A Stowaway's Story
by Momolovesanime
Summary: Magnolia ate the Tick-Tock Devil Fruit, allowing her to stop time at will. Because of this, she was taken in by the navy at a very young age. Many years of training later, she escapes her prison and hides out on a pirate ship. Little did she know she'd end up becoming the Straw Hat Pirate's very own watchman at the age of 12!
1. Beginnings

It all started with a fruit. A Devil Fruit, to be exact. That's what caused me to have such a messed up life full of greed, tears, pain, adventure, and near-death experiences. But I wasn't always the one being greedy, crying, having adventures, or nearly dying. No, my friends and family shared those times with me.

To start from the very beginning, my mom married a navy officer who dreamed of making it big one day. He barely ever came home so it was just the two of us for the shortest time, Mom and I. Whenever Dad did come home, he would always apologize to us for not being a good father and husband, and then go back out onto his ship within days.

Mom always told me to keep hoping someday he'd come home for good. I shared her optimism. We still loved him even after he practically abandoned the two of us. He'd write and say he loved us and missed us. But I still felt somewhat empty and longed for him to come home for an extensive period of time.

He wrote to us one day saying that he'd found something spectacular and was coming home immediately to show us. Within the very week, he showed up on our doorstep with a small bag in hand.

"You'll never guess what I found, Honey!" he said happily to Mom. He smiled as he picked me up and hugged me tightly. He set me down and kissed Mom. "Our troubles could be over with this!"

"What is it?" Mom asked.

"I found a Devil Fruit!" he said. "I don't know what powers it holds, but it's a Devil Fruit alright!" He pulled a fruit out of the bag and set it on our kitchen table. It was a completely pale yellow fruit shaped like an orange with swirls on it. "These things can go for millions of Berries!"

Mom was just staring at it. I had no idea what was going on.

"What do you think?" he asked. "Should we sell it, or eat it?"

Mom lifted her piercing gaze onto my father. "Maybe we should think about it…" Mom said. "We should take a few days to think about our decision…"

Something seemed a little weird about her, I could sense it.

"You're probably right," he said.

Mom spent most of the day just staring at the fruit on our kitchen table.

Later that day, I finally asked him, "Daddy? What's a Devil Fruit?"

"Oh!" he said. "Devil Fruits give you special powers if you eat them. There's this one captain in the navy that can turn his body into smoke! Really the possibilities are endless… It's just a risk to eat them because it's really anyone's guess as to what power you'll get."

I scowled at the fruit. "Why would anyone want something like that if it's so risky?" I asked.

"Exactly the point!" he said, petting my head. "Well, it's a little late for you. Shouldn't you be going to bed?"

I looked to Mom and she nodded. "Yes," she said. "You should probably sleep. It's late."

I nodded and said goodnight to both of my parents.

* * *

><p>It was in the middle of the night when my mom woke me up frantically.<p>

"Maggie!" she whispered. "Maggie, wake up!"

I opened my eyes groggily and sat up. "What time is it…?" I asked, rubbing my eyes and yawning.

"Never mind that," she said, looking behind her. She grabbed my hand and half-dragged me into the kitchen.

"Mommy…?" I asked. "What's wrong?"

She looked around frantically and sighed in relief. "I overheard your father saying he was going to eat the Devil Fruit…" she whispered.

"What's wrong with that?" I whispered back.

"Things would be very, very bad if your father gained immense powers…" she said. "He would try to take over the navy, and probably die out in the sea trying! No. I will not let him ruin his life over a greedy wish."

"What do you need me for, then?" I asked.

"You," she said. "You're going to eat the Devil Fruit. We'll keep it a secret from your father. He'll think someone stole it in the middle of the night."

I stared at Mom for the longest time. "No," I said. "You eat it. I don't want powers."

"You have to be the one, Maggie," she insisted.

"No!" I said. "I don't want too!"

"Maggie!" she said. "If I ate the fruit… It would be a waste of the thing. You have longer to live than I do."

"What…?" I asked. "What do you mean?"

I saw tears fall from her eyes. "I didn't want to tell you this…" she said. "But I've visited plenty of doctors and they all say the same thing… I have an incurable heart condition… I don't have long. You have to eat it!"

I felt tears drip down my face and I hugged her tightly. "Mommy… I don't want you to die… No! You're lying!"

"I'm afraid I'm not…" she said. "Maggie, please hurry. Before your father wakes up, you must eat it."

"Why would he wake up?" I asked.

"Like I said, I overheard him saying he was going to eat it," she said. She picked up the fruit and gave it to me. "Eat it in your room quickly. Even if it tastes disgusting, eat it all! Don't leave a trace of it!"

I nodded, accepting my mission and snuck quietly back into my room. I hid in my closet and looked at the fruit in the dark. I closed my eyes and put it in my mouth. I bit down.

The fruit was the most disgusting thing I had ever tasted in my entire five years of living, and that was counting baby food! I swallowed reluctantly and felt like I was about to throw up. I wanted to throw the rest away, but Mom had given me specific instructions! Hesitantly, I put the fruit back to my lips and finished the rest in one horribly awful bite.

I still felt nauseous as I went back to my bed. My stomach didn't really like me for eating the fruit.

But then, suddenly I had this weird feeling. I became aware of my newfound powers.

"The Tick-Tock Fruit…" I whispered to myself.

I went to sleep with my head spinning about my new powers.

* * *

><p>I woke up when I heard yelling in the kitchen. It was Mom and Dad yelling at each other.<p>

From what I could hear, Dad was accusing Mom of eating the fruit. Mom assured him that she didn't.

"Well then who could've eaten it, huh?!" he asked. "Magnolia?!"

"Maggie's got nothing to do with this!" Mom said. "It's obvious that someone stole it!"

"That's what you want me to think!" he said. "Magnolia ate it, didn't she?! You gave it to her because you didn't want me to have it!"

"That's not true!" she said desperately. "Someone stole it-"

I heard Dad's heavy footsteps come closer and closer to my room. I pretended I was asleep. The door to my room burst open and I felt Dad's strong hand grip my wrist and raise me out of my bed. I squeezed my eyes shut in fear.

Mom dashed into my room and screamed at him to put me down.

"You ate it, didn't you?!" he asked. "What is it?! Tell me, now!"

I knew I would have to lie to him. "I didn't eat it, Daddy…" I said, looking at him.

He looked pleased. "You're lying and I know it," he said surprisingly calmly. "You know how I know? Your eye is different."

Mom was staring at me, crying. "What…?" I asked. He set me down and I ran to my mirror. My right eye had a clock on it!

"What's the name?" he asked. "Tell me the name."

I shook my head and said, "No. It's a secret."

"MAGNOLIA!" he yelled furiously, picking me up by the wrist again. "Tell me the damn name!"

I cried in fear of my own dad. That's when everything stopped. Literally, the whole world stopped and I was the only thing moving. I was like I made everyone freeze. I stopped time.

I struggled out of his frozen hand, but it was no use. Time unfroze a couple seconds after. I panted from the taxing effects of stopping time.

"Just tell me the name!" he yelled.

"Maggie!" Mom said. "I'm so sorry!"

I cried even harder and struggled to get out of his hand.

"Just tell me!" he said. "Tell me and I'll let you down!"

I stopped struggled and seriously thought about it. "Tick-Tock Fruit…" I said.

He set me down and everyone stared at me. He walked out of my room and dragged Mom out with him. He locked the door and I started panicking.

_What was he going to do?!_ I thought.

I sat on my bed the rest of the day in fear he was going to come bursting through the door at any second.

When my worries exhausted my brain later that night, I fell asleep.

* * *

><p>I woke up in a different place. I didn't even recognize where I was. Wherever I was, it was on the water because I felt swaying. I sat up and looked around. On the other side of the room, there wasn't a wall. There were only parallel bars, like I was in a jail cell.<p>

Apparently, I had slept through my own father kidnapping me in the middle of the night and bringing me to his navy ship. I had a feeling I would never see my mom again.

I was five.

My dad came in moments later, seeing I was awake.

"Wh-where am I…?" I asked.

"My ship," he said. "You're going to be a small part of my crew now. You'll be the key to my victory."

I shook my head and said, "No… I don't want too!"

"You will," he said. "In due time, that is."

"I want to see Mommy!" I said. "Take me back!"

"Can't," he said. "I have my orders from HQ. We won't be going back for a long time, Magnolia."

I couldn't believe my ears. I didn't want to believe any of it.

"You see, Magnolia," he said. "I did some research on the Tick-Tock Fruit. Turns out the last person who ate it could stop time and everything around him, but still be able to move within the frozen time. I believe that you may have eaten one of the most powerful Devil Fruits that exist."

"No…" I said to myself. "I don't want this…"

"Too bad," he said. "You can't undo the effects of a Devil Fruit." He tossed me something small and black. "That's for your eye."

I picked it up off of the ground. It was an eye patch with a clock drawn on it.

"Put it on so people don't freak out when they see you," he ordered.

I tied the eye patch over my right eye. It was weird only being able to see out of one eye, but I got used to it eventually.

I wasn't officially part of the crew. Most of the soldiers thought I was just on the ship because Dad wanted me to be. No one was allowed to talk to me either. I had to find things to do own my own in my little prison. There was always a guard stationed outside of my room to make sure I didn't escape. I don't even think he knew why he was guarding me.

Dad ordered me to keep practicing and training myself to use my Devil Fruit powers. By the time I was eight, I could freeze time for about a minute and a half at most. He said he would start taking me on missions until I could stop it for at least three minutes.

He beat me every time I said I couldn't do it or refused to help him. Stopping time, to give an analogy, was like holding back a river on my own. It exhausted me every time I stopped it for more than a minute. Sometimes to be cruel, he'd even take away my meals to get me motivated, even though he knew how taxing it was on my small body.

It didn't take very long until I was able to freeze time for three minutes due to his violent methods, but it still exhausted me. That's when he let me out of my prison for the first time. He gave me a small, sheathed knife with a rope attached to it and said, "In case you ever get in trouble, use this." I tied the rope around my waist and moved the knife pouch to my side for easy access.

That's when we went on our first mission together. I hated every second of it. He handcuffed me to his arm so I couldn't run and he could move when I stopped time.

We did many of these so called 'missions' together. They were actually his attempts at making his way up the ranks by defeating many notorious pirates in the East Blue by using my powers. Most of the time, he would have to carry me back to the ship because I was too weak to stand from using too much power.

When I was ten, Dad received a letter saying that Mom had died.

He didn't even let me go to her funeral.

I was distraught for days and refused to eat or train. No one even tried to comfort me.

That's when I'd had enough. That very day I stopped just going along with whatever he said. I tried to escape every chance I could get. So much so, that Dad eventually stepped up my security to seven men guarding me.

I trained harder than before and sometimes forgot to eat because I was so focused. By the time I was eleven, I could stop time by a whopping ten minutes when I wanted too, but at the end of the ten minutes, I could barely move, let alone breathe.

I was twelve when I finally escaped. I had kept a small bag ready for times when I needed to make a quick escape. Inside was one change of clothes, my small knife, and two pairs of handcuffs with the keys.

The ship docked on an island called Syrup Village. Apparently there were complaints from villagers about battle sounds and blood on the north cove of the island. Dad was sent to check it out.

All of my guards were looking the other way when I stopped time in my room. While time was frozen, I grabbed my bag, unlocked my door from the keys supplied by one of the guards, and ran off the ship without anyone noticing me.

I took off running as fast as I could off of the north cover while panting. I kept running until I made it all the way to the south cove. I hid behind a tree when I saw that there were people there.

There was a blonde girl and a sheep-headed man standing in front of a ship. From what I could hear, they were giving the ship to a man in a straw hat, an orange haired girl, and a man with three swords. I also heard the word pirate mentioned…

_If these people are pirates, then they'll be going out to sea far away from any navy ship! _I thought._ And if they kill me, then I guess I'll be finally rid of my burden._

That's when I decided to hide in there ship.

I stopped time again and ran onto the ship. I found an empty barrel to rest/hide in. I started time again and waited patiently.

_I just want to ride along until their next stop, but if they noticed me before then, I could be in trouble… _I thought._ Hopefully, they won't even notice me!_

* * *

><p>My hopes of the pirates not noticing me were short lived. About two days later, I sneezed and someone heard it.<p>

"Zoro…?" I heard a girl's voice. "Did you just hear that?"

I heard something metal then a low male voice say, "Yeah. I heard it."

"It sounded like a sneeze," said the girl.

I didn't dare move an inch or even breathe. I was too scared to even begin to think about stopping time. I managed to move my hand slowly enough to pull out my small knife in case they actually found me.

"Someone else is on board," said the low male voice.

I could feel myself shaking in the barrel. _They're not going to find me… They're not going to find me…_ I thought.

I heard what sounded like metal sliding. I bit my lip and hoped they wouldn't find me.

"Come out now and I won't hurt you," said the man.

_But I'm too scared to move… _I thought.

"Ok, your choice," he said.

Within seconds, the top of the barrel was sliced off and the whole barrel tipped over. I spilled out of it and stood up as fast as I could with my knife in hand.

"Go get Luffy," the man ordered the girl.

She took off running.

The man had a sword in hand. He looked at my small knife and said, "Drop it."

I backed up away from him and said, "St-stay away…" I pointed the knife at him with two shaky hands.

He pointed his sword at me without fear and said, "Drop it."

I panicked, dropped the knife, and screamed. I stopped time and ran around the frozen man. I ran out of the room and saw the girl was about to come in with the straw hat wearing man.

I stumbled and fell, but I lost focus and time started again. I felt a little bit out of breath.

"What…?" I heard the man with the sword say. "So fast…!"

Within a millisecond, he was pointed his sword at me again. I was still on the floor trembling in fear and breathing heavily.

"What's going on, Zoro?" asked the man in the straw hat.

"I think we've got a stowaway," he said.

I stopped time again, despite my fatigue, and ran back into the room to pick up my knife. I ran up the stairs of the ship and panicked when I saw another person. He had a long nose and was wearing a bandana on his head. Panicking made me accidently unfreeze time again. This made me feel a little bit more short of breath.

I screamed in fright and ran around the person.

"How'd she get up there so fast?!" the man with the sword asked.

"Stop!" the straw hat wearing man yelled. All of a sudden, I was being picked up by a very stretchy arm. I squirmed and tried to get out of his grip, but it was no use. He set me down in front of the three of them. Soon, the one with the long nose joined them.

I was helpless and totally out numbered. The man with the sword pointed it at me and swiped my knife out of my hand with the tip of his sword. The rest of them just stared at me.

"No more of that," he said, throwing the knife on the ground behind him.

I had tears coming out of my eyes at that point. I was caught red handed.

"Our first stowaway is a little girl. What should we do, captain?" the man with the sword asked.

"Hmm…" said the man with the straw hat. "I don't know."

"Well think of something!" the girl asked.

"What's your name?" straw hat asked.

"M-M-M-Magnolia…" I stuttered.

"Are you here to steal my treasure?!" the girl asked. She looked furious.

I shook in fear and said, "No…"

"Then why are you here?" straw hat asked, tilting his head to the side.

"I… I just wa-wanted to get away… from the n-navy…" I said.

"Navy?" asked long nose.

"Why were you with the navy?" sword-man asked.

"I… I, uh… I don't want to t-tell you…" I said.

"Why not?" straw hat asked. "We won't tell anyone!" He smiled and laughed.

"I ate a Devil Fruit…" I said. "And they wanted to u-use it..."

"You're a Devil Fruit user?" the girl asked.

I nodded.

"Oh! Oh!" said straw hat excitedly. "What can you do? I'm a rubber man!"

"Luffy! Be serious!" said the girl.

"What?" he asked. "It's a question…"

"I bet its speed," sword-man said. "No other way she could've run that fast otherwise. I shook my head. "Then what is it?"

"I… I don't think I should tell you…" I said.

"Why is there a clock on your eye patch?" straw hat asked. "It's cool!"

"Um…" I said. "I don't know…"

"What should we do with her?" sword-man asked again.

"Are you a musician?" the straw hat wearing man asked.

I shook my head.

"Ahh… Too bad…" he said. "Well, anyway! I've made my decision!" he said rather loudly.

I gulped and wondered if this would be my watery grave.

Everyone stared at the man wearing a straw hat. Straw hat stared at me for a long time. I was sweating and shaking with anxiety.

Finally, the man said, "You can join our pirate crew and be our watchman."

"WHAT?!" everyone asked.

I was in complete shock. They were going to let me live! I had never expected this to happen.

"So what do you say, Magnolia?" straw hat asked. "Wanna join us?" He smiled mischievously and held out his hand. "Oh wait! On one condition. You have to tell us your Devil Fruit power someday."

Everyone stared at me. I nodded and saluted him. "Sir, yes, sir," I said.

The straw hat man laughed and said, "This is great! You've already got an eye patch to look like a pirate! Oh, by the way, I'm the captain, Luffy. This is Zoro," He pointed to the swordsman. "Nami," He pointed to the girl. "and Usopp!" He pointed to the long nosed man.

"Hi…" I said.

Nami was scolding me. "You're not getting my treasure," she said and then walked away.

Zoro and Usopp walked away.

"There's a telescope up there and everything," Luffy said, pointing to the crow's nest.

"Should I go up there now…?" I asked.

He nodded and said, "Yeah! Just holler if you see an island or a ship or something."

I nodded and he walked away.

I climbed up the rope ladder into the crow's nest, or the lookout station. Like Luffy had said, there was already a telescope there.

* * *

><p>That's where I spent most of the day. Around noon, Luffy and Usopp found cannon balls and decided to test them out.<p>

"OI!" Luffy called up to me. "Magnolia! See anything we can shoot?"

I quickly looked around and said, "Yeah, there's a column of coral off in the distance."

"Thank you," Luffy called back up to me.

Luffy fired the first shot, missing it completely. Usopp tried next, hitting the target directly. Luffy decided that Usopp would be the ship's sharpshooter.

Everyone else went inside the ship. I was still watching for any sign of an island or ship.

That's when I saw someone on a raft coming towards the ship. "Everyone!" I yelled. "Someone's coming!"

Everyone walked out, then dismissed the raft. I heard Luffy say, "Looks weak…"

I watched the man park his raft next to the ship and climb aboard.

"Guys…" I said. "He came on board!"

The man had a sword. He looked up at me and yelled, "Come on out, you pirates!" He started kicking some of the barrels on deck.

Luffy came out on the deck and asked, "What? What? Who are you?"

"Shut up!" the stranger yelled. "It doesn't matter who I am!" He sliced some of the railing with his ship and Luffy jumped out of the way.

"I've killed a countless number of pirates," the man said. I gulped and started wondering what I should do. "But a no name pirate like you dares to try kill my partner?!"

He took a swing at Luffy, who dodged again.

"What do you mean? Partner?" Luffy asked. "I don't know what's going on, but don't damage our ship!" he yelled. He picked up the man and set him flying to the other side of the ship.

Zoro walked out next. "Hey… Aren't you Johnny?" he asked.

"Who is it? Calling out my name with no respect!" the man said. The man sat up, seeing Zoro, and said, "Zoro-aniki!"

"So it is Johnny," Zoro said.

"Why are you here, aniki?" Johnny asked.

"Where's Yosaku? You're not together?" he asked.

"What? What?" Luffy asked. "You two know each other?"

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	2. A Restaurant and an Island

It turns out Zoro did know the man named Johnny, and his partner whom he brought with him on the raft. Yosaku was very sick and he didn't know what was wrong with him.

They brought Yosaku on board and I went down from the crow's nest with everyone.

"In the end…" Johnny said, holding back a sob. "His teeth fell out and his old wound opened up and started bleeding." He buried his face in his hands and said, "I didn't know what to do! So we were on the rocky island, but then… BOOM! A cannonball came flying from this ship."

Everyone's mouths dropped to the floor. Luffy and Usopp started apologizing profusely.

"Sorry doesn't cut it…" Johnny said. I gulped and took a gigantic step back. "Isn't that right, partner?" He started crying really hard over his sick friend. "Aniki… Is he going to die?"

Nami walked over and said, "Are you stupid?" She knelt down and looked at his tongue. Johnny started yelling at her, but she slapped him away from Yosaku. "Luffy, Usopp. We have limes in the storage, right?" They just stared at her. "Don't just stand there! Bring them here!"

Then ran away quickly, saying, "Yes, ma'am!"

They gave the limes to Nami and she squirted the juices of multiple limes into his mouth and on his face.

"It's scurvy," Nami said. "If we weren't too late, he'll be fine in just a few days."

"Re-really?!" Johnny asked. He seemed elated.

Seeing that the situation was being handled without my help, I went back up to the crow's nest to look out for ships and islands.

Soon, Yosaku jumped up and started dancing with Johnny, singing about how he was ok.

"Sorry for not introducing ourselves," they said together.

"I'm Johnny," he said.

"And I'm Yosaku."

"And we're…" they said, pausing for dramatic effect. "The pirate bounty hunter duo!"

"We used to be colleagues of Zoro-aniki," Johnny said.

"Glad to make your acquaintance," Yosaku said.

After Zoro and the other two chatted for about a minute, Yosaku suddenly fainted from not being fully healed.

* * *

><p>Later that night, we were all in the kitchen with Yosaku resting off to the side on the floor.<p>

"This is a lesson," Nami said.

"Yeah. There're pitfalls like this when you travel the sea for a while," Zoro said.

"Which means we need a cook on the ship to consider the distribution of nutrients using limited kinds of food," Usopp said.

It didn't really make sense to me, but from what I understood, the ship needed a cook in order to stay healthy.

"It's definitely a necessity," Nami said.

"A necessity, huh?" Luffy said, taking a bite of bread. "Ok, then! A seafaring cook!"

"What?" Usopp and Nami asked.

"Let's go find a seafaring cook!" Luffy said.

"Yeah!" Usopp agreed. "Then we'll be able to eat yummy food even on the ship!"

"Exactly!" Luffy said happily.

Nami nodded in agreement. Seeing that I had just joined, I felt a bit inferior to everyone else. I didn't think this decision included me.

"Well, if you're looking for a cook like that, there's a perfect place for that," Johnny said.

"Alright!" Luffy said excitedly. "Where's it?"

"It's close to the Grand Line, and there are rumors about the hawk-eyed man you've been looking for there," Johnny said.

Zoro gave a smirk and clutched his white sword.

"We'll head north-northeast!" he said.

* * *

><p>Nami was told that I would bunk with her since I was a girl. She didn't seem too happy, but simply accepted it.<p>

The next morning, I was up a bit earlier than everyone else and headed for the crow's nest to start my job. Since there wasn't really anything to sea except water, I started thinking about the crew aboard the ship.

Nami seemed nice, but she wasn't comfortable with me in the crew for some reason. Now that I look back, I suppose she thought I was going to steal her treasure.

I was completely terrified of Zoro. I think it was because he had three swords and, from what I could tell, he knew how to use them very well.

My thoughts were interrupted by Usopp.

"Oi, Magnolia!" he called up to me. "We're having breakfast, so come down before Luffy eats it all!"

"Ok!" I called back.

I climbed back down the rope ladder and went into the kitchen with everyone.

Luffy had already eaten at least three different slices of meat. I sat down next to Nami, it being the only place with an open plate, and grabbed an apple from the buffet style food display on the table.

I wasn't very hungry, despite not eating for at least two days.

"Is that all you're going to eat?" Nami asked me.

I nodded my head and said, "I trained myself to be able to go for five days without food on the navy ship."

Everyone's mouths dropped to the floor while I took a bite of the apple.

"That's amazing!" Luffy said, stuffing another piece of meat down his throat. "I wouldn't last a day without something to eat!"

Everyone ate and chatted happily a lot. I didn't really join in on any conversations. I still felt very menial compared to everyone else.

When breakfast was over, I set back to work up in the crow's nest.

Everyone came out on deck.

"Our destination is…" Johnny said. "The Sea Restaurant Baratie!"

After about thirty minutes of sailing and looking all round, I finally spotted the restaurant in my telescope!

"I see it up ahead!" I said.

Everyone cheered and stared out into the horizon, looking for it.

From what I could see in the telescope, it was a boat that was modeled to look like a fish. It wasn't sailing so I figured it was anchored in place.

When it finally came into view for everyone else to see, I came down from the crow's nest.

"What do you think, everyone?!" Johnny asked, feeling proud of himself.

"It's a huge fish!" Luffy said.

"How lovely!" Nami said.

"It's pretty cool!" Usopp said.

"Right? Just like I told you, right?" Johnny said.

All of a sudden, there was a huge honking noise and a ship pulled up next to us. My eyes widened when I saw the insignia on the sails.

"N-n-n-n-n-n-navy!" I yelled in fright.

I immediately ran into the kitchen and hid in the corner where I couldn't be seen by any windows.

Johnny and Yosaku hid behind the open door. Apparently, the captain on the navy ship saw the duo and they started getting angry and saying that they weren't captured by pirates.

Johnny even pulled out a handful of wanted posters and yelled, "Would small bounty hunters go after these guys?!"

Then, I heard a loud bang, like a canon shot, then a huge crash. Since I didn't feel any vibrations, our ship hadn't gotten hit.

A couple minutes later, Usopp came in and said, "The navy's pretty much left."

I nodded and came out of the kitchen. "I'm sorry for not seeing the navy ship… I apologize," I said.

No one really was paying attention to me. I realized Luffy wasn't anywhere on deck. Apparently, the cooks on the restaurant boat had taken him off our ship because he accidently damaged the boat.

_So that's what the bang and the crash was…_ I thought.

The navy's ship was still there, but there wasn't anyone on board.

* * *

><p>We waited and waited for Luffy to come back. During that time, the bounty hunting duo repaired the broken railing form when Johnny cut it earlier. It was at least an hour before anyone thought something was definitely wrong.<p>

"What's taking Luffy so long…?" Usopp asked.

"Seriously…" Nami said.

"Maybe they'll make him do chores for a month or so…" Usopp said.

"He should've made it the navy's fault instead of being honest!" Nami said.

"But honesty is always rewarding," I said. "That's what my mom always said."

"Yeah, but we're pirates," Nami said. "We don't have to be honest."

"E-Exactly!" Usopp said.

I coiled back and blushed. "O-oh…" I said.

_I guess they don't really like me all that much yet…_

"Maybe we should check it out…" Usopp suggested.

"Yeah," Nami agreed. "Zoro! We're going to see what Luffy's up to, wanna come with?"

"Sure," he said, getting up.

"Wh-what about me?" I asked.

"We don't need that many people… Plus the ship isn't that big, so… You stay here, ok?" Nami said.

I saluted her and said, "Of course, ma'am."

She looked at me funny just before the three of them set off to see what was happening with Luffy.

It was just me, and the bounty hunting duo on the ship, but they were playing cards together. There was no reason to go to the crow's nest if we were anchored. I really didn't know what to do all alone.

Four days passed and I had the overview of the situation. Luffy was being forced to work at the restaurant for a whole year because of the damage he inflicted on the restaurant.

I wondered if we would really have to wait a year for him to be free.

Usopp kept begging Luffy to talk to the owner to let him off the hook.

But that misty fourth morning, Don Krieg showed up at the restaurant. His ship was probably the biggest galleon I'd ever seen. But there was something weird about the ship. It was all tattered and broken, like it had been through a war.

Everyone on board started panicking, both inside Baratie and on the _Going Merry._

I didn't really know just who Don Krieg was at the time, but judging by everyone's tense reaction on the ship, I knew he couldn't be a very good guy.

That's when I had a feeling things were about to get precarious.

Zoro and Usopp went to the restaurant to see what was happening. They told Nami, Johnny, Yosaku, and me to stay on the ship in case things went badly.

Nami spent her time looking at a certain wanted poster, the bounty hunting duo still played cards, and I watched them quietly.

All of a sudden, Nami did something weird. She pushed Yosaku and Johnny off of the ship.

"Wh-what are you doing…?!" I asked.

She grabbed my hand and pushed me off the ship.

As I hit the water, something strange happened. I suddenly lost all of my strength and I couldn't move a muscle. I couldn't even move my arms to panic or even doggy paddle.

_I can't swim!_

* * *

><p>I woke up on a wooden surface sputtering water out of my mouth. Usopp was sitting over me.<p>

"Are you ok?" he asked.

I sat up and asked, "Where am I?"

"We're going after Nami," he said.

"But what happened?" I asked.

"Nami-aneki pushed us all off of the ship and then sailed away with it, but when you didn't surface, we figured you couldn't swim," Johnny said.

"Luffy-aniki told us to go after her," Yosaku said.

I nodded, but in doing so I saw Zoro. My eyes widened and I melted into my seat when I saw him. He was on the floor, wrapped in bandages. It looked like he was unconscious.

"He said to bring you with us because it would be dangerous at the restaurant," Usopp said.

I got as far away from Zoro as possible on the small ship and nodded. "Ok," I said. "Thank you for saving me, Johnny-san, Yosaku-san."

"No, problem!" they both said, giving me a thumbs up.

I looked to my right and saw my bag, which I picked up. I checked inside of it quickly to see if anything was missing. Thankfully, it was all there. My knife, clothes, and handcuffs. I sighed in relief, but I was still terrified of being within arm's length of Zoro. He frightened me down to the core, even if he was injured.

"Um… What happened to Zoro-san…?" I asked.

"He fought a man named Hawke-Eye Mihawk…" Yosaku said.

"A truly terrifying guy…" Usopp said. It looked like he was shaking in terror just at the mention of his name.

"Is… Is he going to be alright?" I asked.

"Yeah," Johnny said. "Aniki won't die so easily."

I was relieved that he would be ok, even if he scared me to death.

* * *

><p>We followed the <em>Going Merry<em> until it was out of sight. But, from the direction we were going and based on everyone's reactions, it wasn't a very good place to be.

My guess was further proved when all of a sudden, a shark came out of nowhere and almost swallowed Yosaku whole. We couldn't save him from the shark, but it looked like it wasn't killing him. They swam off into the distance and I hope at least he would be ok.

We arrived not long after at an island with an extremely tall building right as you entered.

"W-w-we're here…" Johnny said. "Arlong Park!"

I didn't really know what that was, but from his tone, it sounded bad.

"So this is the hideout of the fishman Arlong, who came from the Grand Line?!" Usopp said with much terror in his voice. "Is Nami really here?!"

Zoro finally woke up and I inched myself away from him as he sat up.

"Well, Nami-aneki was on the _Going Merry_, so let's first see if it's stop on this island or not," Johnny said.

I looked around and pointed to our ship. "There it is," I said.

Zoro stood up with the aid of his only sword left, the white one, and looked dead serious when he said, "We're busting in."

Everyone else was against the idea, including me; I just didn't want to say anything.

"Forget the tedious stuff. Luffy told me to bring her back," he said. "And I'm going to do just that, no matter who we're dealing with!"

"Wow…" I whispered to myself. "Brave…"

"Let's go!" Zoro said.

But before we could actually get going, Usopp and Johnny banged Zoro on the head with mallets, rendering him unconscious yet again. While he lied unconscious, Johnny and Usopp tied him up.

"Why did you do that?" I asked.

"Are you kidding?!" Usopp said. "We're not going in there with all those fishmen!"

Zoro woke up. "What… What the hell?! Untie me!" he yelled.

I was too scared of him to assist, even though I wanted to untie him.

Usopp and Johnny were looking at a map to figure out where we were, which was on the east side on Arlong Park, Cocoyashi Village.

"Untie me!" Zoro demanded again.

"You've been hurt so bad, you're nearly dead!" Usopp said, seemingly enjoying himself. "Just take it easy and leave this all to me!" He stood up near the front of the boat and proclaimed, "I'll bring Nami back!"

"You're in high spirits, now that you know she's not in Arlong Park…" Johnny said.

I laughed because it was true.

"Pull the boat up to the _Going Merry_!" Usopp ordered.

We were about to dock the boat when Usopp spotted some fishmen close to the shore and hid in terror.

"F-f-f-f-f-f-fishmen!" he whispered to us. We all crouched down in hopes that they didn't see us. We quickly sailed past them.

Usopp and Zoro started arguing.

"What should we do now?" I asked after they finished arguing.

"Well, we'll just have to say we couldn't bring Nami back," Usopp said.

I gaped at how fast they were quitting.

"How… How can you just abandon her like that?!" I asked.

"Untie me, you idiots!" Zoro demanded.

All of a sudden, I heard a splash. Two of the fishmen on the dock jumped in and were heading straight for us!

I started panicking, well, we all did.

"Escape?" Usopp asked Johnny.

"Agreed."

They went over to the side of the boat and jumped in.

"Hold it, you two!" Zoro said angrily.

I started freaking out and saying, "But I can't swim! I can't swim!"

"Untie me, then!" Zoro said.

This was probably the worst possible situation to be in. I didn't know who I was more scared of, Zoro, or the fishmen.

That's when they surfaced and jumped onto the boat.

I screamed.

"Oh, so it's just a runt little human and a man," the bigger of the two said.

"Were you two banished from somewhere or something?" the smaller asked.

I was too scared to even think. Zoro looked furious as he said, "Yeah… I guess…"

"Ah, so these injuries are from being tortured," the smaller one said.

The bigger fishman looked at me and said, "Why did you get banished?"

I couldn't even muster words.

"Well, anyway, let's take them back to Arlong-san for now!" the bigger one said.

They tied me up next to Zoro, which I was freaking out about, and started sailing the ship towards the main part of Arlong Park.

"Open up the gates!" the small one yelled. "We've got some suspicious people."

We sailed into a place that looked somewhat like a resort. They untied both of us, only to bind our hands and walked us in front of the infamous Arlong.

I started crying silently. This whole situation was probably the scariest thing I had even been in.

"I'll ask you again. Just why have you come here?" Arlong asked us.

Knowing I wouldn't respond, Zoro said, "I already told you, we're looking for a girl, half-fish bastard!"

I gulped and knew that his words would definitely not go unpunished here.

"You have a big mouth for a lowly human," Arlong said. "I'll excuse you this time, but never say _half-fish_ again." It made me feel about an ounce better. "We fishmen are evolved humans who've gained the ability to breathe underwater. That makes us superior to you. Get it through your head that fishmen are the lord of all things! Defying us is basically defying the laws of nature."

All of a sudden, Nami walked in and said, "I'm sick of those ridiculous opinions of yours, Arlong."

Zoro and I were both shocked to see her.

"N-Nami-san…?" I asked.

"Don't look so stern, Nami," Arlong said. "You may be human, but you're an exception. You're a skilled surveyor and a prized member of the Arlong Pirates!"

"I have more smarts than you guys. It's only natural," she said.

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Nami was supposed to be our friend, and yet she was talking casually with this fishman!

"Oi, Nami!" Zoro said. "What does he mean, _surveyor_?!"

"Oh, they're acquaintances of yours?" Arlong asked Nami.

"Don't be ridiculous. His crew was just my prey," she said cold-heartedly. "I swiped a whole load of treasure from these guys."

_No wonder why she was so paranoid about me taking her treasure… _I thought.

"So these are your true colors, huh?" Zoro said. He looked disgusted with her. "After you hated pirates so much before…"

"Surprised? It was all an act. Does this make it clear enough?" she asked. She turned to the side and showed us a tattoo on her arm. It was the symbol on the Arlong Pirates' Jolly Rodger. "I'm a pirate, plain and simple! And a leader of the Arlong Pirates!"

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	3. Luffy Finally Arrives

Arlong laughed at the two of us. "So you had them completely fooled!" he said. "This girl's like a cold-blooded witch! She'll even forget her own parent's death for money!"

I could see a sparkling of hatred in her eyes as he said that. But it was hatred towards us… I couldn't really put my finger on it, but I had a hunch that there was more to the story that what she was saying.

"I see…" Zoro said. "Thought, it's not like I ever trusted her to begin with. If she was a homicidal maniac, I wouldn't be too surprised."

"In that case, get the hell out of here. You're both an eyesore!" she said.

That's when Zoro did something weird. He jumped into the water with both of his hands tied!

_He's going to drown!_ I thought.

I couldn't even muster words to call out his name, I was so frightened.

I looked to Nami with a pleading look. She wasn't even looking at me when she kicked her shoes off and dove in after him.

I think everyone in the vicinity had their mouths on the floor. Nami helped Zoro when she was an enemy pirate?!

She brought him back to the surface within seconds.

"What do you think you're doing?!" she asked him.

He coughed up water and said, "No… What do you think _you're_ doing? You're a small fry who can't even watch one guy die!"

She yelled in anger, "Screw you!" and kicked him in the back. She made him stand up and said, "Mess with me anymore and you _will_ die!"

"I wonder…" he said.

"That's a lot of bandages you have," she said.

"Didn't have a change of clothes, so I used these instead," he lied.

He punched him right in his injuries. He fell to the ground in pain.

"Hey, Nami. What should we do with them?" Arlong asked.

"Lock them both up! I'll deal with them myself," she said.

That's when a fishman came in saying he'd seen someone on the island near Cocoyashi Village with a long nose.

_Usopp… _I thought._ Just don't get caught like us!_

With that, Arlong said he'd head out to Cocoyashi Village to try and find him.

And with that, Zoro and I were thrown into a jail cell, but they tied our feet as well as our hands.

"We've got to get out of here…" he said. "Do you think you can reach the rope on my hands?"

I stared at him with frightened eyes and shook my head.

"Dammit…" he said.

That's when the door opened to reveal Nami on the other end. She was holding a knife and was staring at me.

I gulped and shut my eyes tightly.

But what she cut wasn't me, it was my bindings. She cut Zoro free as well.

"Nami-san…" I said in shock.

"Just hurry up and escape," she said. "Before Arlong comes back."

She walked out of the cell, leaving the door open.

Zoro and I looked at each other with confusion.

_She actually untied us…?_

And with that, a couple seconds later, Zoro's sword and my bag were tossed in the cell.

We both picked up our belongings and stood up.

"Hey, you've got a knife in that bag, right?" he asked. I nodded. "You might wanna take it out… Things could get hairy."

I gulped, fished out my knife, and unsheathed it.

We walked out of the cell and into the main part of Arlong Park. A dozen or so fishmen were still there.

"Stay here," he said. "This won't be long."

"N-n-no," I said. "I'll… I'll wait by the gates."

He laughed at me and said, "Good luck getting there with only that knife!"

I stopped time and didn't bother taking him with me. I ran over to the gates without bumping into anyone and hid behind them. When I restarted time, I popped my head out from the gate and waved at Zoro.

His mouth dropped to the floor and he yelled, "How did you get over there?!"

I gulped because that meant the fishmen had heard him. I hid back behind the gate and within about five minutes, Zoro called over to me, "Hey, it's alright. You can come out."

I popped my head out from behind the gates and quickly scanned the place to see if he was telling the truth. When I saw all of the fishmen lying unconscious on the ground, I walked over to Zoro, who was sitting in Arlong's chair.

"So…" he said. "You gonna tell me how you got over there so quickly, or not?"

I gulped and shook my head in fear. "No…" I said. "Not yet, anyways…'

"Well, whatever…" he said.

I put my knife back into my bag and we both waited for something to happen.

"Um… Uh… Zoro-s-s-san…?" I asked. "Are your injuries ok?"

"Yeah, I feel fine," he said. "I could destroy a city or something."

I winced in fear and said, "Th-that's… good…"

* * *

><p>Zoro started getting impatient, complaining Luffy was taking too long. "Oi, aren't you bored?"<p>

I shook my head. "I have too many things to worry about…" I said.

He looked at me funny and said, "Like what?"

"W-well…" I said. "For one, Usopp-san could be dead, Luffy-san could never show up, and Arlong could be back any minute…"

Zoro sighed and walked away. I'm pretty sure I heard him say, "Kids…" under his breath.

Zoro walked by the fence next to the gate and started talking to someone. I wondered who it was, so I walked over to him.

I wasn't tall enough to see over the gate, so I only heard a voice.

"From the looks of it, you're human," said the voice.

"Y-yeah…" Zoro said.

_He must be talking to a fishman!_ I thought.

"A marine? Or maybe a guest?" the fishman asked.

"Guest…?" he asked. "Yeah, I guess."

I looked to all of the fishmen Zoro had just beaten and held back a laugh.

"Arlong-san's not here right now, is he?" the fishman asked.

"Nope," Zoro said. "Where'd he go?"

"Apparently, there's a long-nosed outsider running all over the place," he replied.

_Usopp is alive! What a relief…_

"They locked up his friends here and went to Cocoyashi Village to get this other guy," the fishman said.

Zoro hopped on the fence, and then jumped down to see the fishman. Zoro said, "Are you coming?"

I quickly ran around the fence, careful not to fall in the water and stood next to Zoro. The fishman was an octopus-man.

"How do we get to Cocoyashi Village?" Zoro asked.

"Oh, there are two of you!" said the fishman. "Get in." He pointed to a floating pot in the water. "You're both guests. I'll take you there, swordsman and little human.

Zoro helped me into the pot, and then got in himself. I was very nervous of being so close to him. The octopus fishman swam us over to Cocoyashi Village and we both got out of the pot. Zoro thanked him and he swam away.

"What a stupid guy…" Zoro said.

"Um… Zoro-san?" I asked.

"What?"

"Wh-what are we doing here?" I asked.

"We're gonna save Usopp," he said.

"Oh…"

"Come on, keep up with me," he said. He started running and I followed after him.

Whenever he got too far ahead, I'd stop time for a brief second to catch my breath and then catch up to him. The only downside to this was that stopping time made me even more fatigued than I would be.

"Z-Zoro-san…" I called. "Can we stop… for a bit?" I put my hands on my knees and took deep breaths.

I heard Zoro sigh as he walked next to me. "Jeez…" he said.

When I caught my breath, we walked into the village. Zoro started asking around. It turns out that Usopp was just captured and taken to Arlong Park…

"We were just there…" I mumbled to myself. "I could save him if we were there…"

"He's surely dead by now!" said a villager.

"Damn…" Zoro said. He took off running.

"W-wait, Zoro-san!" I yelled. I ran after him and eventually caught up to him via time stopping.

"Woah!" he said while we were running. "You catch up fast!"

I panted while saying, "I guess you could call it… a talent…"

There was a huge boom close by. Zoro and I stopped running.

"What was that…?" he asked.

We looked to our left and saw a small ship coming right for us. But it wasn't just any ship! Luffy, Yosaku, and someone I didn't recognize were on board!

"Yo! Zoro, Magnolia!" Luffy said.

Before I knew what was happening, Luffy's arms had stretched to pick both of us up. He set us down onboard.

Going full-speed-ahead, the ship crashed into a cliff. However, before it crashed, I stopped time and jumped off board before I could die or get seriously injured.

Zoro was definitely not amused. He burst up out of the rubble yelling, "What the hell are you guys doing?!"

Luffy dusted off his straw hat and said, "What do you mean? We're here to get Nami. Have you still not found her?" He dusted his clothes off and said, "Oh yeah! What about Usopp and Johnny?"

"Um… Usopp-san was captured," I said. "And I have no idea where Johnny-san is…"

"Usopp!" Zoro said. "That's right! There's no time to lose!" He took off running.

"What happened?" Luffy asked.

"He was caught by that bastard Arlong!" Zoro said, still running. "We gotta hurry before he's killed!"

That's when Johnny came walking awkwardly towards us. He was sobbing for some reason.

"He was killed," Johnny said.

"What…?" I asked, covering my mouth in horror.

Johnny fell to his knees. "We're too late…" he said. "Usopp-aniki is dead! He was killed! By Nami-aneki!" He went on to say horrible things about Nami that I just didn't want to hear.

I couldn't believe what I was hearing… _Nami killed Usopp?! There was no way that was true! I don't believe it!_

Apparently Luffy didn't believe him either. He grabbed Johnny by the collar and shouted at him. "HEY! Say that again! I'll kick your ass!"

I didn't think someone as happy and carefree as Luffy could get so angry… It was almost terrifying to see him that mad. I took a couple steps back.

"Stop, Luffy. This has nothing to do with Johnny," Zoro said.

"If you don't wanna believe me, then don't!" Johnny said. "But I saw it with my own two eyes! She killed him-"

"Quit saying that kinda stuff!" Luffy yelled. "Nami would never kill Usopp! We're friends!"

"B-but, I-"

I gasped and saw Nami standing a couple feet away from us. "Who're friends, Luffy?"

"Nami!" Luffy said happily. He let Johnny go and ran over to her.

"Why are you here?" she asked coldly.

"What're you talking about? You're our friend! We came to get you!" he said.

"You're all a big problem," she said.

"Nami?" he asked.

"Friends?" she asked. "Don't make me laugh! You're just a pathetic bunch of people cooperating with each other."

"Damn you!" Johnny yelled. "You killed him! I saw it with my own eyes!" He choked back a sob and said, "How dare… How dare you kill Usopp-aniki!"

"So what?" she asked. "Why not kill me as revenge?"

"What?!"

"I'll tell you this much," she said. "Right now, Arlong wants to kill Roronoa Zoro and his men because Zoro just had to be stupid. No matter how monstrously strong you guys are you can't beat Arlong. If you hang around this island, you will be killed. Not that it matters to me, though…"

I didn't believe anything she said. I could feel like something was behind her behavior and I couldn't believe that she killed Usopp. But, it felt like she was warning us to go away before we all got killed as well. From what I could tell, Arlong did seem incredibly strong.

Zoro and the man I didn't know started arguing.

"This is no time for you two to be going at it!" Yosaku said.

"That's right," Nami said. "If you're going to fight, could you do it off the island? Don't butt any more into this land's affairs, stupid outsiders. Or do you still not get it? The only reason I got close to you was for the money! Now that you're flat broke, you have no charm whatsoever!" She sighed and said, "You can have your ship back, just go find a navigator somewhere else! Go look for your One Piece, or whatever. Just get the hell out of here!"

"Nami-san…" I whispered.

"Goodbye," she said firmly.

"Nami…" Luffy said, shocked. He suddenly fell over. "I'm going to sleep."

"Sleep?" Yosaku asked.

"In this situation?! And right in the middle of the road?" Johnny asked.

"I don't plan on leaving the island, and I'm not interested in what's happening on the island. And I'm a little sleepy." He yawned and fell asleep.

Zoro facepalmed and I was slightly impressed that he could fall asleep so quickly.

Nami suddenly turned furious. "Fine, whatever!" she screamed. "Go ahead and die!" She ran away without another word.

And with that, we didn't really know what to do.

The man I didn't recognize walked over to me and said, "Hello, mademoiselle. My name is Sanji." He smiled at me.

"Uh… Um…" I stuttered. "Hi… I'm Magnolia…"

"What a beautiful name for such a pretty girl!" he said.

Zoro hit him on the head with his sheathed sword. "Knock it off, Sanji!"

"What?" he asked.

Yosaku and Johnny insisted that we run away, but Zoro was insistent that we stay. I have to admit, I really didn't know what to do.

But then, I decided that I would look for Usopp!

"Um… Zoro-san?" I asked. "Is it alright if I look for Usopp-san?"

"He's dead!" Johnny said.

"But I don't believe that!" I said.

"Yeah, whatever," he said.

"I'll accompany you!" Sanji said.

I shook my head. "No, I'll be alright by myself."

Zoro laughed. "You're just a kid! Sanji, go with her," he said.

"Don't be so mean to Magnolia-chan!" Sanji said.

"No," I said. I admit, it did offend me, but I just let it go. "I can go by myself. I'll be alright, I promise."

And with that, I stopped time and took off running down the road until I couldn't see them anymore.

I accidentally ran into him, literally. He knocked me over while we were both running.

"M-Magnolia?!" he asked.

"Ow…" I said as I stood up. I looked up and saw Usopp. "Usopp-san! I knew you weren't dead!"

"Oh… You heard about that?" he asked.

I nodded. "Yeah!" I said. I dug inside my bag and took out one pair of my handcuffs. I strapped it on my wrist and said, "Give me your wrist."

"Why…?" he asked, holding it out.

"We'll get back to the others faster this way," I said, clicking it shut.

He looked at me funny and asked, "What are you doing…?"

I stopped time and said, "Just walk."

We started walking together, back to the others.

"How is this faster?" he asked. "Nothing's changed except you handcuffed me."

I laughed and said, "Oh, it's a bother to explain it now. Sometime later, ok?"

"I guess…" he said.

"So, Nami-san didn't kill you," I said. "I knew it!"

"No," he said. "She saved my life! She pretended to stab me, but she really just stabbed her hand and I played along and fell into the water!"

"Wow!" I said. "I knew Nami-san wouldn't do something so horrible!"

We approached the others and Usopp said, "Hey, guys! I'm alive."

"They can't hear you…" I said.

"Why not?" he asked. He looked closely at the others and saw that they weren't moving. "What the…?"

I uncuff-ed Usopp and he froze as well. I put away the handcuffs and unfroze time.

"Woah!" Zoro said. "When did you get here?!"

"Just now," I said.

Usopp was looking at me strangely and I smiled. "What the…?"

"You're alive!" Zoro said.

"See, I told you!" I said.

Zoro woke Luffy up. There was a lot of yelling because he was so happy to see Usopp.

"Johnny was talking nonsense after all!" Luffy said.

"No… In a way, it's not a lie…" he said. "But, it's actually the opposite! Nami saved my life!"

He proceeded to tell everyone about the heroic thing Nami did to save him.

_She's only acting badly, but she really does care about us_! I thought. _I knew it! She can't be a bad person!_

"So, what do we do?" Zoro asked. "Do we storm Arlong Park?"

"H-hold on! We gotta find out what the story with Nami is first!" Usopp said.

"It's no use, either way," said a woman behind us. "No matter what you guys do, Arlong's rule won't come to an end.

"Nojiko!" Usopp said.

"Who's she?" Luffy asked.

"Nami's big sister," Usopp said.

Sanji suddenly acted funny and said, "N-Nami-san's older sister?! No wonder she's so beautiful!"

"What do you mean it's no use?" Zoro asked, ignoring Sanji.

"Please, don't get involved with this village. Leave Nami alone. I'll explain the circumstances," Nojiko said.

"You mean why she joined Arlong's group?" Usopp asked.

"Yeah," she said. "You'll feel like leaving the island once you hear it."

"Alright, let's hear this reason or whatever, then," Usopp said.

"I'll pass," Luffy said.

We all looked at him funny.

"I don't care about her past," he said, walking away.

"Where are you going, Luffy?" Sanji asked.

"For a walk," he said.

"You're not going to listen?" I asked.

"No," he said simply. "I'll pass."

"Well, don't mind him. That's just how he is," Zoro said. "We'll hear you out, though I doubt it'll change anything."

Just after saying that, he fell asleep. I really didn't care about what was happening on the island. I just wanted to get back sailing as soon as possible. Arlong was a scary guy and I didn't want to wind up dead.

"Umm… Luffy-san?" I called after him. He stopped and turned around. "Can I come with you?"

He smiled and said, "Sure!"

I ran up to catch him and we started walking.

* * *

><p>I felt walking with him was a little awkward, but I doubt he thought it was.<p>

"So, Magnolia!" he said. "You said you ate a Devil Fruit when we first met! What is it? You promised me you'd tell me someday!"

"I guess I could tell you now…" I said. "It's called the Tick-Tock Devil Fruit."

"Ooh!" he said. "Is that why your eye patch has a clock?!"

I nodded. "Yeah, I guess. I didn't really pick it out myself," I said. "My dad gave it to me."

"Wow, he must be nice!" he said.

I shook my head. "He's the one I wanted to escape from," I said. "He's a navy officer and he wanted to use my powers to work his way up the ranks in the navy."

"What exactly can you do?" he asked.

"Stop time," I said. "So far, my record is ten minutes and twelve seconds!"

His mouth dropped and he gaped at me. "WOW!" he said. "That's amazing!"

"I didn't really want to tell you, because I thought you'd want to use my powers too…" I said.

"Why would I do that?" he asked.

"I don't know…" I said. "Just me being a worry-wart."

Up ahead, I saw our path being blocked by three fishmen. One of them was the octopus one! I gasped and hid behind Luffy.

"Oh? So those are fishmen…" he said.

"That one's seen me before…" I whispered. "The octopus one!"

"Cool!" he said.

"No!" I whispered. "Hold on…"

I stopped time and ran around them before they could notice me and hid behind a tree ahead of them.

I started time back up and Luffy just walked past them like they were ordinary people.

"Oi, wasn't there two of them…?" asked one of the fishmen.

"Might've been our imagination…" said the other.

"Oi, wait!" said the octopus one. "Stop!"

Luffy turned around and said, "Huh? You called?"

"Who are you?!" he asked. "What're you doing on this island?!"

"What does it matter to you?" he asked.

"Ye-yeah… You have a point," he said.

"I'm Luffy. I'm taking a walk," he said.

"A walk?" he asked. "Have fun!"

I was very concerned about how stupid that fishman was. It could almost be hazardous to his health at this point.

"Where are you headed?" asked one of the other fishmen.

"Heck if I know," Luffy said.

When they finally went away, I stopped time and went back to Luffy, panting.

"Wow, that was close…" I said.

"Why're you out of breath?" he asked. "Nervous or something?"

"No," I said. "Stopping time takes a lot out of me..."

"Ah," he said. "But still, it's pretty cool how you can just appear and disappear in seconds to me, but it's like, a minute to you!"

I said, "Yeah… I guess I never thought about it that way." I laughed and said, "It must look really funny, now that I think about it!"

"Yeah, it is!" he said. "It's all like, _pop_! And then you're gone! And then, _pop_! And you're back again!" He laughed.

It was fun, talking with Luffy. I was convinced that, by talking to him, he could make anyone laugh.

We walked and chatted as we entered the village. That's where we saw a man escorting the navy somewhere.

"N-n-n-navy…?" I whispered.

I quickly hid behind Luffy as they walked past us.

"Why does that old guy have a pinwheel on his head…?" Luffy asked.

"I don't know, but it looks kinda funny!" I said.

We continued walking through the village. That's when Luffy said something that stunned me a little.

"Say, Magnolia," he said. "Can I call you Maggie?"

My eyes widened and I stopped walking.

He stopped and asked, "Something wrong…?"

"No," I said. "It's just that my mom used to call me that all the time…" I took a deep breath and smiled. "Yeah, I guess you can call me Maggie."

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	4. Battle for Nami!

Luffy and I sat down under a palm tree to get some shade from the hot sun. Even though it wasn't much, it was very refreshing.

Luffy was still hung up on the man with the pinwheel hat.

"But it was so cool, you know?" he said.

I sighed and said, "I guess… I mean, it's funny looking, but I guess it's cool."

He thought for a while and said, "Oh, I just thought of a cool move!"

All of a sudden, people in the square were screaming for a doctor. I saw Nojiko, Nami and the man with the pinwheel hat in the middle of the huddle. It seemed like Nojiko was the one that was injured.

Luffy and I got up and walked over to them. "Yo, Nami!" Luffy said. "What's up? Need help with anything?"

I could sense that Nami was either extremely mad, or extremely sad. My guess was both from her reaction.

She turned around and stared at us. "You're still here?!" she yelled. She grabbed Luffy by the shirt and yelled, "This has nothing to do with you! Leave the damn island already!" She threw him to the ground and ran away.

"Luffy-san!" I said, helping him up.

He went to go sit back under the palm tree. "What's _her_ problem?" he pouted.

"Maybe it has something to do with the story Nojiko was going to tell us…" I said.

"Well, whatever…" he said.

That's when the villagers started getting very loud. Most of them even were holding pitch forks. I wondered if they were about to mob Arlong Park.

_Why would they do something like that?_ I thought. _Surely they know how strong the fishmen are… Right?_

I looked to Luffy and said, "Hey…" But he was asleep. I sighed and sat down next to him. "Well, no matter…"

That's when Nami came running back to the village. I couldn't really hear what she was saying, but from the looks of it, she was trying to calm everyone down.

I don't think her words worked, considering that they headed off in the direction of Arlong Park anyway.

Nami fell to her knees and started crying. I nudged Luffy to wake up. I had to literally slap in order to wake him up.

He stood up and asked, "What?"

I pointed to Nami who was actually stabbing herself in the arm by now.

Luffy's face turned dead serious. He walked over to her and I followed. He stopped her from hurting herself anymore and threw the knife on the ground.

"Luffy…" she said. "What do you want?! You don't even know anything! You don't even know what's happened on this island the past eight years!"

"Yeah. I don't know," he said simply.

"This has nothing to do with you!" she said. "I told you, leave the damn island already!"

"Yeah. You told me," he said.

She started throwing dirt on him and screaming, "LEAVE! I don't need you! Leave! Leave! Leave! Leave!" She started sobbing and looked to Luffy with helpless eyes, "Luffy… Help me…" she begged.

He took off his hat and gave it to her. He walked a little ways away and stuck his arms in the air as he yelled, "Of course I will!"

That's when I noticed Sanji, Zoro, and Usopp were all sitting nearby. Luffy walked over to them with a dead-serious expression on his face. "Let's go," he said.

Everyone stood up and said, "Yeah!"

"Maggie, stay here with Nami," Luffy said.

I saluted him and said, "Aye, aye, captain!"

They walked away. I knelt down next to Nami and said, "It's going to be alright. Luffy and the others will help you, I promise."

"Yeah…" she cried. "I know they can."

"Do you want me to clean up your wound?" I asked.

"Y-yeah, sure…" she said. "The clinic is just down the street, but the doctor is storming Arlong Park."

"I can do it," I said. "I had to do this kinda thing loads of times on the navy ship!"

I helped her up and we walked over to the clinic and I looked around for some bandages. Once I found them, I set them beside her and cleaned out the wounds. I wrapped her arm in the bandages tightly to stop the bleeding.

"There!" I said. "You're all done!"

"Thank you, Magnolia," she said, still crying a little.

"You can call me Maggie," I said, smiling.

She gave me a weak smile and said, "Alright then, Maggie-_chan_!"

I'd never really been called that before, but it sounded cute. I liked it!

"Then you can call me Nami-chan, too," she said.

I saluted her and said, "Roger that, Nami-_chan_!"

We laughed about it for a while. I was glad I got to cheer her up a little.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Maggie-chan…" Nami said. "Can we go to Arlong Park? I kinda want to watch the fight."<p>

"Yeah sure," I said. "I kinda wanted to watch it, too. Let's go!"

We both walked to Arlong Park. There was a large crowd outside one of the gates to get in.

"Arlong!" Nami yelled.

I saw Zoro and Sanji on the ground. They looked like they had been defeated. But where was Luffy?

"What did you come here for?" Arlong asked Nami. "I was just about to crush some pirates.

"I came here…" she said, "to kill you."

He laughed. "You've tried that dozens of times before! Were you able to kill me then?" he asked. "You must be completely aware that you mere humans can't kill me. Now, listen. I won't kill you and you can't escape from me. You'll be our surveyor forever. But, as you know, I am a good-natured man. If possible, I want you to be our surveyor of your own free will. So! How about this? I'll kill everyone here except you. But if you happily come back to the Arlong Pirates and draw sea charts as one of the leaders, I don't mind letting those people from Cocoyashi Village live. But I can't let these guys live, oh, and you two, runt." He was looking straight at me. I gulped. "They went too far. The question is who you'll be with." He paused. "Either take my side to let the villager live, or take the weakling's side and try to fight me while everyone else dies. Your choice. But from the look of these guys, it's pretty obvious it'll be a tragedy for you. Not to mention the runt looks like the weakest one." He paused again. "Nami… Are you _my_ friend? Or… _their_ friend?"

The villagers behind us were in an uproar about how unfair the choice was.

Either way I died, so I just hope she would at least let the villagers live instead of everyone dying.

But, it triggered something in me I'd never felt before. It was either an adrenaline rush or a wave of stupidity, but I wanted to go down fighting, since I was probably going to die anyway.

_Might as well go down fighting…_ I thought.

I dug around in my bag and pulled out both of the handcuffs. I latched one on each wrist and tightened them. I took a deep breath and unsheathed my knife.

"Oi, what're you doing, girl…?" I heard someone say behind me.

Nami turned around to face all of us and said, "Sorry, everyone! Please die with me!"

I stuck up a fist into the air and yelled, "Yeah!" along with everyone else.

But then, there was a sudden burst of water from somewhere.

"Could it be…?" Yosaku asked.

"Luffy-aniki!" Johnny and Yosaku cheered together.

"Luffy-san?" I asked.

Both Sanji and Zoro stood up, even though I thought they were defeated.

"Thirty seconds!" Zoro said. "I won't last longer than that!" He shoved his white sword in his mouth and looked up at Arlong.

This weird feeling came over me and I rushed out to help them. "I'll double that time!" I said to Sanji.

"Maggie-chan?!" I heard Nami call. "What're you doing?!"

"I'm going to fight!" I said.

Zoro looked at me and smirked. "Ok, kid," he said. "Let's see what you've got!"

Sanji dove into the water.

Arlong just laughed and laughed and laughed and laughed. "YOU?!" he asked. "Fight me?!" He laughed some more. "Humans can't defeat me, let alone children!" He laughed and laughed even more.

I bit my lip and said, "We'll see about that…"

Zoro stood up and sliced Arlong's cheek. He was panting wildly. His injuries must be near life-threatening by now!

"Tick tock!" I said. I stopped time and tried to stab Arlong with my knife, but his skin was too strong. I panicked and it unfroze.

Before I knew it, I was being flown into a wall. My stomach was hurting really bad… He'd knocked the wind out of me, but I stood back up and stopped time again. I was looking for a weak spot, if he even had any. Then, I thought… Gills! Except I wasn't tall enough…

"Dang it!" I said.

I tried jumping, but he was just waaay too tall. I sighed and knew that fighting was definitely not my thing. But I had gotten myself into this, and I was going to go through with it, no matter how stupid!

I started time again and Zoro was attacking Arlong.

"People with Devil Fruit powers are hated by the sea and loose the strength to even struggle, and then they die! If that brat's still alive, then that means someone's cheating in this game!" Arlong said.

_So that's why I can't swim… _I thought._ No one ever told me why._

"Cheating?" Zoro asked. "It didn't seem like a fair fight from the start."

"Well, at any rate, if there's a hindrance, I need to check on it," he said. "Out of my way."

Something came flying towards Arlong. "Egg Star!" I heard a familiar voice say. It was Usopp!

"I've got your back, Zoro, Magnolia!" he said from far away.

"Ok!" I said. "Roger that!"

"You don't honestly believe him?!" Zoro asked.

Turns out Usopp had beaten one of the leaders and Arlong was definitely not happy about that…

"You defeated… Choo?!" he asked.

"Hahaha!" Usopp laughed. "That's right! With my arrival, the fight comes to a climax at once! It heads into the final chapter!"

But that's when the octopus fishman got back up and said, "I won't let you have your way!"

"Hey, Arlong!" Usopp yelled. "Look this way!"

Arlong looked for a brief second before dismissing him as a threat. "Looks like you want to die first, Roronoa Zoro."

"No way I'll die," he said. "I'll break your proud nose!"

He immediately swung for Arlong's very long, pointed nose, but his swords couldn't even scratch it!

I gulped and said, "Tick tock…" which stopped time again.

_His nose… His nose!_ I thought.

From where Arlong was standing, if I reached up high, the highest I could, I could reach his nose! I took my knife and started cutting, trying to see if I could cut it off.

I wondered if it had been a minute yet and what Sanji was doing in the water.

When I wasn't getting anywhere with his nose, I gave up and started time again. I was very, very out of breath. Must've been at least five minutes I was trying to slice it!

"Stupid…" Arlong said, as if he knew what I did. "It's a proud nose because it's unbreakable."

"So that's why…" I said to myself.

"If you were at your full strength, you might've been able to give it a scratch at best."

It was already a one-sided fight and Arlong hadn't even done anything!

They began fighting: nose vs. three swords. And yet, Arlong was overpowering Zoro!

_I have to do something… _I thought. _But I need to catch my breath before I… SCREW THAT! Zoro! I need to help you!_

But then I realized that if I brought Zoro into frozen time via handcuffs… he wouldn't be able to use one of his swords!

_Dang it…_

"Tick tock!" I stopped time again and knelt down besides Arlong's foot. I put my knife up high, to get as much momentum as I could, and forced it down into his foot.

Or so I thought.

It didn't cause him to bleed. If anything, I had just poked him in the foot.

I looked at my knife and touched it sharp edge with my finger. It was definitely very sharp! Why wasn't it cutting?!

_Dang… His skin is waay too tough for my knife…_

I started time again, but I forgot to stand up.

"Huh…?" Arlong said, looking at me. "Get away from my feet!"

"Magn-" Zoro said.

And with that, he kicked me very, very hard in the stomach into the wall opposite of where we were. I hit the wall with so much impact, I couldn't even move. Not to mention the exhaustion I was feeling from stopping time so much.

I struggled to get up to at least my knees, but strength wouldn't come to me.

My stomach felt wet and sticky. I didn't even want to look because I knew there would be blood.

_I know this is… probably nothing…. compared to Zoro or Sanji… But I can't go on… any longer… I tried my best, Luffy… I'm sorry._

I passed out after that.

* * *

><p>When I woke up, I felt much better. I heard screams coming from next door as I sat up. I sounded like Zoro. I looked around and saw that I was in the doctor's clinic from the time I bandaged Nami.<p>

After the screams stopped, the doctor came in. "I see you're awake."

I nodded.

"You've got three broken ribs and one helluva bruise on your stomach," he said. "Just try and take it easy for the next couple days."

"Roger that," I said, saluting him.

I spent two days in the clinic while the whole island was partying. Luckily, when I was discharged, they were still celebrating the fall of Arlong Park!

Yes, Arlong Park had fallen and Luffy was the cause of it.

I was congratulated a lot by the villagers even though I really didn't do anything to help. Usopp had stacked at least a dozen tables on top of each other and started singing songs about himself. I didn't really see Nami or Zoro throughout the whole party. But Sanji was hanging out with some girls and Luffy was stuffing his face.

The party ended the morning of the first day and our pirate crew decided to set sail once more. The only thing missing was Nami. She hadn't shown up yet.

"Maybe she's not coming," Zoro suggested.

"Why not?!" Sanji asked. "You made another pass at Nami-san again, didn't you?!" he accused Zoro.

"Why would I do that?" Zoro asked.

Zoro and Sanji started arguing again. I smiled happily at everyone and laughed. "Nami-chan will come," I said. I climbed up the rope ladder to the crow's nest and took out my telescope. I pointed it in the direction of the town and saw her running to catch up.

But, I decided not to tell them. It was a surprise!

When everyone finally noticed her, she stopped running and yelled, "Get the ship moving!"

She full-out sprinted for us, dodging every single villager in her path. We set sail and it looked like she wouldn't make it aboard!

That's when she jumped from very, very far away, but somehow made it on board!

She smirked and partially lifted her shirt, letting a bunch of wallets fall out. I laughed and said, "She stole their wallets!"

She turned towards the village and kissed one of the bills. "Take care, everyone!" she said.

I looked through my telescope at all of the angry villagers and laughed.

"She's still the same…" Usopp said.

"Who knows when she'll betray us again…?" Zoro said.

Well, Sanji, Luffy, and I were all happy to have her aboard again!

"Bye everyone! I'll be back!" she called after them.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	5. Bounty on our Heads

I was up in the crow's nest as usual a couple days after we set sail from Nami's village. Usopp was trying to invent a new attack called Tabasco Star and Nami had just gotten her morning paper. There wasn't really anything around at all so I was getting bored.

Nami started complaining to Usopp about the rising expenses of the newspaper. I sighed and surveyed the area again with my telescope.

_Still nothing… _I thought.

All of a sudden, Sanji started yelling at Luffy, who was trying to steal one of the tangerines off of Nami's tree's she took aboard the ship. They were right under the crow's nest. It made my job a little more pleasant to smell the citrus aroma of the fruits.

Everyone was relaxing when suddenly two flyers fell out of Nami's newspaper.

That's when everyone started freaking out.

I rushed down the rope ladder to see what was going on. "What is it?" I asked.

Luffy started laughing mischievously as he held up a wanted poster with his name and a thirty million Berry reward at the bottom.

I couldn't understand why he was laughing. This was a very bad thing!

"We're wanted criminals now!" he laughed.

Usopp noticed that the back of his head was in the picture as well. Sanji was mad they he wasn't featured in the picture. He started sulking off to the side.

Luffy was still laughing as he yelled, "Let's rush into the Grand Line, men!"

"Um… Nami-chan…? Why is he laughing? Isn't it bad?" I asked.

She sighed and said, "Yes, it is." She rolled her eyes at the idiotic crew and said, "You guys don't understand the seriousness of the situation! This means our lives are in danger now! This isn't the time to be taking it easy and relaxing in the East Blue…"

That's when Sanji noticed something on the floor. It was another piece of paper.

"Hmm…?" he said. "What's this?"

Usopp walked over to see what it was. His mouth dropped to the floor. "Uh… M-M-M-Magnolia…"

"Yes?" I asked.

Sanji flipped over the piece of paper so that everyone could see it.

It was a picture of a girl with shoulder length black hair, an eye patch and a brown eye.

"That's funny," I said. "It kinda looks like… me." My eyes grew wide when I realized it _was_ me. "Oh… it is me."

The poster read, 'Missing child, Magnolia F. Last seen in Syrup Village. If seen, please contact Navy Headquarters. 3,000,000 Berry reward.'

I just stared at the poster. "He knows I'm gone…" I whispered to myself, almost horrified of what was on the poster.

"Woah…" Nami said. "Looks like the navy really does want you. Three million Berries…"

"Are you ok, Magnolia-chan?" Sanji asked me. "You look a little pale."

"I'm fine," I said. "I just don't want to go back…"

Luffy smiled and put a hand on my shoulder. "Don't worry, Maggie! You're our friend. We won't let the navy take you!"

I smiled back and said, "Thanks. That makes me feel better!"

"Yeah!" Sanji said. "I won't let anyone near you, Magnolia-chan!"

* * *

><p>A couple minutes later, I saw something off in the distance. I squinted at the tiny figure pulled out my telescope. With the image enlarged, I saw that it was a navy ship.<p>

"Navy ship!" I yelled. "There's a navy ship on the starboard side about…" I quickly estimated the distance and came up with, "five kilometers away!"

No one really seemed to care.

_I wonder if they heard me…_

"Umm…?" I asked. "Did you guys hear that?"

"Yeah, loud and clear," Sanji said.

No one did anything. We just kept sailing towards the ship.

When it was parallel to us, the man on board was someone they'd seen before. The ship quickly turned around and sailed next to us.

I held my breath in anxiety and turned away from the ship so that they wouldn't see my face.

The rest of the crew seemed nonchalant about it.

I was praying that they wouldn't notice the back of my head.

_Please don't be dad's ship… PLEASE don't be dad's ship!_ I thought.

But when the captain of the ship started yelling about how Luffy was under arrest, I realized it wasn't dad's voice. I relaxed a bit.

But that was before I heard the sounds of a cannon being aimed. I cringed and braced for the impact, which didn't come. Zoro had cut the cannon ball in two!

"Don't bother people while they're napping…" he warned.

"There's plenty more where that came from!" the captain said. "Fire! Fire!"

The cannoneer went to take a second shot, but the cannon exploded instead. They took a couple seconds to dust themselves off before ramming their ship into ours.

"Damn brats! How dare you mock a former Navy HQ Lieutenant!" said the captain. "We'll just have to fight you hand-to-hand! Come on, men!"

They boarded our ship, but I wasn't very concerned after I remembered we had two Devil Fruit users, a thief, a swordsman, a sharpshooting liar, and a kicking cook.

I actually kinda felt sorry for the navy people. But, in any case, they were the navy. I curled up in a ball in the crow's nest and hid my face in my knees.

The 'battle' was over within seconds. They screamed like girls as they ran back onto their ship to escape the wrath of Sanji during meal time.

A couple minutes later, the navy ship had vanished from sight and Sanji called from the kitchen, "Nami-san, Magnolia-chan! I've finished preparing your meals!"

I came down from the crow's nest in a hurry. Whenever Sanji called for meal time, it was always a race to get into the kitchen before Luffy. He always hogged the meat. But thankfully, Sanji always made extra for Nami and me.

After lunch was over, Nami called a meeting out on deck. She had a map on the floor and was looking at it intently.

"We're finally nearing the Grand Line…" she said. "It looks like the only way into it is through Reverse Mountain here." She pointed to the mountain on the map.

"What a pain…" Zoro said. "Can't we just sail straight into it?"

"Nope," Sanji said. "From what the geezer told me, it's the only way boats can enter."

"How come?" Usopp asked.

"Supposedly it's dangerous," he said.

"But how come?!" Usopp asked.

"I don't know!" Sanji said.

"Well," Nami said. "It's because-"

"Alright! Then let's head straight into it!" Luffy said.

"Are you even paying attention?!" Nami shouted.

Luffy laughed and said, "But it looks fun! Plus it'd be way cooler going straight into it!"

Nami sighed and said, "Talking to you makes me feel like I'm going to go crazy…"

I chuckled. _Poor Nami…_

"Anyways, let's stop at an island first and get meat!" Luffy said. "Meat! Meat!"

Nami pointed to a small island on the map. "There's a famous city on this island called Loguetown."

"Ooh!" I said. "I've heard about that! Isn't that where Gold Roger was born and executed?"

"Yeah," Zoro said. "It's also called the city of the beginning and the end."

"The town where the King of the Pirates died…" Luffy said.

"Wanna go?" Nami asked.

"Yeah! I wanna see it," he said. "I wanna see the town where the man who got the One Piece was born and then died!"

* * *

><p>We set our course for Loguetown early the next morning, the city of the beginning and the end!<p>

I kept a close watch out for the special town, even though Nami told me we were pretty far away from it.

Zoro, Luffy and Usopp were playing tag just before breakfast. I'd only woken up a little bit after they started playing.

_How did they get Zoro to play tag…?_ I wondered to myself.

I covered my mouth and yawned as I approached the rope ladder for the crow's nest and climbed up.

Right as I climbed all the way up, Sanji said it was time for breakfast. I was a bit annoyed that I climbed up there for nothing, but I let it go and rushed down the ladder and into the kitchen.

"Say…" Nami said at the table. "What do you supposed happened to Buggy after that?"

I looked up at Nami and asked, "Who's Buggy?"

"A pirate who looks like a clown," she said.

"Who knows? Maybe he's at the bottom of the ocean?" Luffy said.

I wondered what happened to this Buggy to make him be at the bottom of the ocean…

"I wouldn't be so sure of that," Zoro said as he walked into the kitchen. "Pirates are a stubborn lot, every last one of 'em. I hunted pirates for years. I can tell."

Luffy kept stealing food off of Usopp's plate, but Luffy stopped when he walked in.

"Not that it matters, but all of your food's gone, Usopp," Sanji said. He walked over to Nami and me and gave us a cup of yogurt with many delicious berries in it. "A special yogurt desert for two very special ladies!"

"Thank you, Sanji-kun," Nami said.

"Thank you, Sanji-san!" I said.

"YOU STOLE MY FOOD AGAIN, LUFFY!" Usopp yelled. "Give it back!"

But Luffy had already eaten all of it. I looked at my plate. I still had about half of my breakfast left plus a dessert.

"Usopp-san," I said. "You can have mine." I pushed my plate over to him.

He took it gladly and said, "Thanks, Magnolia!" He sneered at Luffy and said, "See, some people share food, while you just take it!"

"You never said it was yours!" Luffy said.

"It was on my plate, of course it was mine!" he yelled.

"Oh, why didn't you just say so?" Luffy asked.

"BECAUSE I WASN'T-"

"Oi, quiet down, you two," Sanji said, thumping them on the head.

"OW! Sanji!" Usopp complained. "That hurt, you bastard!"

Nami sighed and looked at me. "Boys…" she said.

* * *

><p>The next day during lunch, Luffy had stolen Zoro's food, yet again. Nami and I barely ever engaged in conversation with people, we mostly just watched as the boys fought over the table and, occasionally, started fighting and throwing food only to be hit in the head with a frying pan by Sanji which didn't exactly make matters better.<p>

This time, Zoro was so mad, he through a plate at Luffy. The only problem was, Luffy moved his head out of the way and I was sitting right next to Luffy.

What happened next was almost in slow-motion.

When Luffy dodged, Zoro gasped, Usopp and Nami looked horrified and Sanji was running over to me. I didn't realize what was happening, but when everyone started screaming for me to look out; I looked over and saw the incoming plate.

I panicked and my eyes grew wide. I didn't really know what I was supposed to do for that split second.

I shut my eyes and braced for impact rather than dodging, (which was a stupid thing to do now that I think about it).

But the plate never hit me.

After waiting for about ten seconds for the plate to hit me, I opened my eye. Everyone was gaping at me. I wondered what had happened, so I looked at the plate. It was floating in midair.

I smiled happily when I figured out what had happened. I moved my head out of the way and held my hand out to grab the plate as soon as it started moving again.

"Tick Tock!" I said.

The plate suddenly unfroze and flew into my hand. I handed it back to Zoro and said, "Here you go."

When he didn't take it, I just set it in front of him.

Everyone was staring at me.

"What…?" I asked.

"That was awesome!" Luffy said.

That's when I realized I had only told Luffy about my Devil Fruit powers.

"H-how did you do that…?!" Nami asked.

"That's right!" I said. "I didn't tell you guys yet… I ate the Tick-Tock Devil Fruit when I was five and now I can stop time." I bit my lip and sighed. "But I didn't know I could stop individual objects… Usually it's just me."

"T-then!" Usopp said. "Back when you found me and you and I were handcuffed!" I nodded. "That's why it was so quiet and you guys couldn't hear me!"

"Yep," I said. I pointed to my eye patch and said, "It's why I wear this."

"Wow, Magnolia-chan!" Sanji said.

Luffy stuffed a piece of meat in his mouth and said, "Can we see what's under it?" But it came out more like _Cah vee see wuffs wonda eet?_

Usopp coiled back and said, "Wait… is it gross?"

I shook my head said, "No… It's just a little… strange."

Luffy swallowed the piece of meat whole and said excitedly, "Ooh! Let us see! Let us see!"

"I… I guess you can…" I said. I flipped my eye patch up to reveal my other eye that had a clock in it.

I felt like I was a public spectacle for people to stare and gawk at.

"12:06," Luffy said. "That's what it says."

Nami looked at her watch and said, "Woah! It's a working clock!"

"I didn't know it actually worked…" I said, blushing. "At least I don't require batteries!"

Everyone laughed.

* * *

><p>A couple days later, I finally saw it in the distance. Loguetown!<p>

"Everyone!" I called excitedly. "I can see the island!"

"Really?!" Luffy asked, stretching his arm up to the railing of the crow's nest and coming up. I gave him the telescope and he looked through it.

"Ahh! There it is!" he said. "What island is it?"

"Loguetown!" I said. "Remember?"

"Oh yeah!" he said, hoping down.

Everyone came out on deck and looked out into the horizon to see the tiny outline of the big island. I climbed down the rope ladder to join everyone.

"Is it a big town?" Sanji asked.

"From what I heard, yeah," Nami said.

"Sounds like there might be a market with fresh ingredients!" he said.

"I'm gonna hit up the weapon stores," Zoro said. "Being stuck with one sword doesn't suit a Three Sword-Style user."

"In that case, I guess I'll check out some equipment shops!" Usopp said.

_I need some new clothes…_ I thought.

After all, I only had two pairs of clothes. One I wore daily while the other was a pair of pajamas I kept in my bag.

Everyone was getting really excited and couldn't sit still as we neared the island.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	6. Loguetown

"Wow!" Luffy said looking at the entrance arch of the town. "It's a huge town!"

"Used to be full of pirates on their way to the Grand Line," Nami said. "It has everything you could ever need!"

"I can support that," I said. "My dad and I came here once. We were about to go into the Grand Line, but then his orders were changed."

Everyone split off into their own directions. Usopp went to equipment shops while Sanji went to go look at the markets for food. Zoro went to go buy swords and Luffy took off sprinting to the execution platform.

That's when Nami reminded Zoro that he had no money.

"Want me to lend you money?" she asked. "Sure! But including interest, you'll have to pay me 300% of what you borrow!"

He sighed and walked away, muttering to himself.

"Hm… Guess he doesn't want to get another sword…" she said as she walked away.

I followed after her.

"Hey, Nami-chan?" I asked. "Can I stick with you?"

"Yeah, sure!" she said. "I was gonna go clothe shopping."

"Oh!" I said. "That's what I wanted to do, too!"

We found a couple of shops and tried some things on, but we really didn't find anything we liked until the third.

I found a new outfit that I liked and tried it on.

It was a pale yellow and blood red striped, long-sleeved undershirt, an orange tank top to go over it, a red skirt that was longer on one side than the other, a belt to match and cute shoes. (See cover of story for reference.)

When we both checked out, Nami actually offered to buy my clothes. I was really surprised because she was a little bit obsessed with money. I told her no, but she insisted.

Nami had a ton of clothes, so the checkout was taking a long time.

"So… Who runs this town?" Nami asked.

"Captain Smoker," said the lady in the store.

"Captain Smoker?" Nami asked.

"Yeah," the lady said. "He's one of the toughest guys from Navy Headquarters."

I gulped.

"This town used to be a hangout for pirates headed for the Grand Line," she continued. "But ever since he took over, every single pirate who's come into town has wound up in the slammer! His strength is amazing, not to mention he's a monster. They even say he has Devil Fruit powers…"

Nami gasped. "Devil Fruit powers?!"

The lady finished bagging our clothes and we set off for more stores. Nami handed me the bag with my things in it and said, "Here you go!"

"Are you sure you don't want me to pay you back…?" I asked.

"Well, you only bought one outfit and it was under fifty Berries… I'll let you off the hook this time, but this time only, alright?" she said.

"Thank you!" I said.

We walked past the Navy building and saw Luffy's and my posters on the wall. We looked inside and saw Zoro.

"Zoro's working for the navy?!" Nami asked. She looked to me and said, "We saw nothing…" We walked past the building quietly.

We continued walking for a while until I thought I should probably go change into my new outfit and get my bag just in case.

"Nami," I said. "I'm gonna go back to the ship real quick."

"Ok," she said.

I walked towards the harbor with my shopping bag in hand and kept my face down so no one would recognize me.

I climbed aboard our ship and went into the room Nami and I shared. I took out my new clothes and changed into then. I also swung my bag around my shoulder and departed from the ship.

I felt a bit safer with my knife in my bag. I'd be prepared if anyone tried to turn me into the navy.

As I walked through the town, looking for someone from our crew, I found a sword shop with a sign on the window that said 'Free Blade Sharpening! Anything under 75 cm.'

"Ooh!" I said, interested. "That could be handy for the Grand Line!"

Considering I'd never sharped my small knife's blade before, it was no wonder I couldn't cut Arlong.

I opened the door and took out my knife.

"Welcome-" said the shop owner. He looked at me funny and said, "What's a little girl like you doing in this shop of mine?"

I walked up to his counter and said, "I saw your sign on the window for the free sharpening." I unsheathed my knife and said, "This knife's about nine centimeters. Will you sharpen it for me?"

He took the knife and inspected it, looking at it from every angle and said, "This is a nice blade you've got here, but it's actually a dagger, not a knife. Knives are more for cooking."

"Oh…" I said. "Oops!"

"It's pretty dull. I'll take it back and sharpen it for you. Feel free to browse," he said, going to the back of the shop.

I started looking around at the various swords, spears, and daggers.

He came back a couple minutes later and handed it back to me. "Be careful with it," he said. "It's very sharp now."

"Thank you!" I said, smiling at my newly sharpened _dagger_. I exited the store, put it back in the sheath and then into my bag.

As I was walking, I spotted Nami with Usopp and Sanji carrying a huge fish. I ran over to them and said, "I found you guys!"

Sanji looked at me and smiled, "Oh, Magnolia-chan~ You look so cute in your new clothes!"

I blushed and said, "Thank you, Sanji-san."

"Come on… It's going to rain soon," Nami said. "We should hurry!"

"Rain?" Usopp asked.

"On a sunny day like this?" Sanji asked.

"Hurry!" Nami said, walking fast. I followed them, not really knowing where we were going. She opened up a compass-like device and said, "Woah… The atmospheric pressure is dropping fast! I've never seen such a bizarre drop before…"

The wind picked up and whistled through the town eerily. "Now that you mention it, I feel a strange wind…" Sanji said.

I began to feel uneasy. "It's like the weather's telling us something bad is about to happen…" I said.

"A storm is coming to this island," Nami determined.

"A storm?" Usopp asked.

"We'd better hurry back to the ship or we'll be in trouble," she said.

"Is it a pretty big one?" Usopp asked.

"Oi," said someone behind me.

"Zoro!" Nami said.

I gasped and turned around. Sure enough, Zoro was standing there. I back up a little towards Nami.

He looked at me funny, and then dismissed it. "Have you seen _him_?" he asked.

"Luffy?" Usopp asked.

"Yeah, we got separated," he said. "I also feel something strange… like… something terrible is about to happen…"

"M-me too…" I said, looking up into the sky. There were black clouds rolling in up above that was bringing an uncomfortable feeling in the wind as it blew through the seemingly quaint town.

That's when people started yelling that pirates were coming.

_We're kinda already here…_ I thought.

"It's Buggy the Clown!" someone said.

_Buggy…? Isn't that the pirate Nami mentioned the other day?_

"What?!" Nami asked.

"Buggy the Clown?" Zoro asked.

"An execution!" another person said.

"An execution is starting!" said a different somebody.

"Buffy the Clown will be executing Straw Hat Luffy!" said the first.

"L-Luffy-san?!" I said.

"Let's go!" Zoro said.

Sanji let go of the tail of the big fish and said, "Take care of this!" as he ran off with Zoro.

"We have to hurry too!" Nami said, taking Usopp by the ear.

I had trouble deciding who to go with… _Stay with Nami and Usopp on the ship, or help Zoro and Sanji save Luffy?_

I took off running after Zoro and Sanji. A peculiar wind pushed me along, as if it wanted me to fight.

"Oi, Magnolia-" Usopp called after me.

I didn't turn around, I only kept running. About twenty seconds later, I finally caught up to Zoro and Sanji.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Zoro said as we were running. "Go back to the ship with Nami!"

"No!" I said, already a smidge tired from running hard. "I'm helping you!"

"Ah! Magnolia-chan's gonna help us!" Sanji said.

Zoro sighed and said, "Whatever, just don't get yourself killed!"

"Not planning on it!" I said.

"I'll never let anyone hurt Magnolia-chan!" Sanji said.

It was already getting dark even though it was midday. I looked up and most of the grey and black clouds had come overhead. It felt extremely humid, as if was going to rain any second. The sky flashed with lightning and thunder followed, booming loudly after. The wind was picking up and I was scared to death of Luffy being executed. This fear made me run a little bit faster.

We finally made it to the square. Luffy was being held by a board on the execution platform by a man who I presumed to be Buggy the Clown due to his clownish attire.

"Stop the execution!" Zoro and Sanji yelled.

Zoro had already put his green bandana on his head and Sanji had his hands in his pocket. I dug into my bag, got out my dagger, and unsheathed it.

"Zoro! Sanji! Maggie!" Luffy said happily from the platform.

Zoro positioned himself into a stance with on hand on his prized white sword and said, "Stupid! There's a limit to how much you can fool around, Luffy."

"If you're starting a sideshow, let me join you," Sanji said. "What we have to do for now is drive those damn pirates away?"

I couldn't think of anything clever to say.

All of the civilians cleared the square in fear of Zoro.

"Sanji! Zoro! Maggie!" Luffy said.

"So you're here, Zoro!" Buggy said, holding a sword near Luffy's head. "But you're a little too late!" He picked up the sword and looked like he was about to cut off Luffy's head any second.

Zoro and Sanji were running for the platform, but I just stared in horror.

A beautiful woman held out her hand and said, "Guys… get them!" From what happened next, I was pretty sure she was a pirate.

Zoro and Sanji headed straight for the men after them. I slapped myself and ran after them, too.

Buggy laughed evilly and said, "Not even Zoro can stop me now! This is the end of your captain!"

"Zoro, Sanji, Maggie, Usopp, Nami!" Luffy said. I looked up at him and he was smiling. "Sorry. I'm dead!"

With that, Buggy swung his blade down for Luffy's neck.

"Tick Tock!" I yelled, stopping time.

I tried to climb the platform, but I wasn't even tall enough for the first bar. I walked over to Zoro and touched him frantically. He became unfrozen.

"Zoro-san!" I said. "Do you think you can through me up there?!"

"There's no time!" he said.

"But there is!" I said. "Time is stopped!" His mouth dropped as he looked around and noticed no one else was moving. "Can you do it, Zoro-san?" I asked, still touching his arm.

He sheathed all three of his swords and looked up to the platform, eyeing it. He squinted up and said, "Hold on…" He grabbed my arm with one hand and lifted me off the ground briefly. "Yep, I can do it. You're light."

I smiled and said, "Thank you!"

"What are you going to do?" he asked.

"I'm planning to try and stop the sword like I did with the plate, but I haven't really mastered it yet…" I said. "If worse comes to worse, I can just free Luffy-san…"

"Ok, I'm counting on you," he said.

"The second you're not touching me, you're going to freeze," I said. "But you're in battle so please… d-don't die, ok?"

"Got it," he said. "I can't die until I defeat Mihawk anyway. It's you that should be worried. Don't underestimate Buggy, alright?"

"Ok," I said. He picked me up by the waist.

"Ready?" he asked.

I nodded and clenched my teeth.

He threw me all the way up to the top of the execution platform. I was very, very impressed with how strong he was.

I stood up on the platform and looked at the scene before me. Buggy's sword was only a couple feet away from his neck; I would have to be precise with my timing…

I took several deep breaths and focused on the sword. But then, I had a thought…

_How long have I stopped time…?_

I was suddenly stricken with fear when I realized as I looked at my watch that it had been about seven minutes. (Whenever I stop time, my watch automatically starts keeping track.)

Oh no! I thought. I'm going to be exhausted… Oh, crap!

I held my dagger and looked at it. I looked to Buggy and thought about stabbing him before I started time…

I was so conflicted.

_Should I save Luffy first? Should I stab Buggy first? Should I wait to stop the sword?_

So many thoughts were swimming in my head when finally, my body gave up and I unwillingly started time again.

My breath was taken away from me as soon as I returned to reality. My whole body ached and it was a struggle to even take a breath.

"M-Maggie?" I heard Luffy whisper.

That's when a sudden burst of lightning hit Buggy's sword and the whole execution platform went up in flames.

Before I knew what was going on, Luffy had grabbed hold of my foot because lighting doesn't strike rubber.

The wooden platform had caught fire and soon it was falling over. It took a lot out of me just to scream as the whole platform fell.

Luffy grabbed me and jumped off the falling platform because he wasn't being forced down anymore. I realized it was pouring down rain.

He picked his hat off the ground and laughed as we landed. "We're alive!" he said. "Lucky!"

"L-Luffy-san…" I struggled to say. "Th-th-thank you."

"Maggie?" he asked. "You ok?"

I shook my head and said, "St-stopping time… hurts."

He helped me walked over to Sanji and Zoro. "Wow, guys!" he said. "I was worried there for a second!"

That's when the marines rushed in. Luffy sat me on the ground and said, "Stay here, Maggie. We got this!"

"No, we should just get out of here," Zoro said. "With this one injured and the navy breathing down our backs, we should just go."

"Yeah," Sanji said, lighting another cigarette. "We'd better hurry back to the ship or we won't make it to the Grand Line!"

"What?!" Luffy asked. That certainly got his attention. "That's not good!" He held out his hand for me and I took it. He put me on his back and said, "Let's hurry!" He took off his hat and put it on my head.

Zoro and Sanji cleared the way of marines for us.

"Thank you… Luffy-san," I said.

"We'd better hurry or we'll be in trouble!" Zoro said as they were running. It was taking all of my strength just to hang onto Luffy.

"We're gonna make it to the Grand Line!" Luffy said happily.

We ran for a couple more minutes until it started pouring down even harder.

"What the hell is up with this storm?!" Zoro complained.

"If we don't leave soon, we'll be stuck here," Sanji said. "Nami-san was right when she said we should hurry back to the ship! Now Magnolia-chan might catch a cold!"

"Run! Run! Run!" Luffy yelled.

"Which way is the sea?!" Zoro asked.

"I can't tell where we're going because of this heavy rain!" Luffy said.

That's when I heard the marines yelling for us to stop behind. I was too exhausted and aching to worry about them.

"What persistent bastards!" Zoro complained. "Should we stop and fight?"

"No time!" Sanji said.

That's when we all stopped. There was a woman ahead of us and it seemed like she knew Zoro.

"You… You lied to me!" she yelled.

"What?!" Sanji asked. "What did you do to her?!

"You didn't ask my name, that's all," he said. "It's not that I lied to you."

"A rogue like you can't be allowed to own such a renowned sword!" she yelled. "I'll collect your sword, the legendary _Wado Ichimonji_!"

"Just try it," he challenged.

They clashed swords for a short period of time before Zoro told us to keep going.

"Let's go," Luffy said to Sanji.

We started running towards the ship again.

"Oh!" Luffy said. "I see the exit! The harbor is up there!"

"Who is it this time?" Sanji asked.

I looked over Luffy's shoulder and say a man with a motorcycle.

"You're finally here…" said the man. "Straw Hat Luffy."

They stopped running and looked at the man.

"Didn't I tell you that you can't enter the Grand Line unless you beat me first?" he said.

"Oh, yeah. I forgot about it," he said.

"You're such an airhead…" the man accused. But he was kinda right…

"Oi, Luffy…" Sanji said.

"Sanji, go on ahead. We'll be right there," he said.

"Are you sure you don't want me to take Magnolia-chan?" Sanji asked.

"Nah, it'll be over in a sec," he said.

Sanji ran ahead and called back, "If you let her get hurt, I'm going to cook you!"

Luffy laughed and said, "Maggie, don't worry. This'll be over quickly." He set me down and set me over next to a building.

I kinda wished he would've let Sanji take me back to the ship. I was freezing.

The man that Luffy was about to fight was huge and intense-looking. He had two cigars in his mouth and was wearing a jacket over his bare chest.

"We'll see about that…" said the man. He looked at me for a while and said, "You're the girl from the missing posters… Great. A pirate and a missing child. This is my lucky day."

The wind started picking up tremendously and I held onto Luffy's hat so it wouldn't fly away. He barely ever parted with it, so I assumed it was a precious item to him.

"I'll beat you and enter the Grand Line," Luffy said, determined.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	7. A Flipping Enormous Whale

"Enough of this!" the man said. His hand turned into smoke. I immediately knew his name.

_Two cigars… Smoke for hands… It's Captain Smoker. _I thought._ I think Dad's friends with him._

His smoking hands filled the street and grabbed Luffy. I coughed a little and fanned it away.

"What?" Luffy asked. "What's going on?!" He was lifted into the air by the smoke.

"I ate the Plume-Plume Fruit, so my body becomes smoke at will!" he said.

_Logia type… Wow. Pretty rare. Luffy and I only have Paramecia._

That's when the smoke, controlled by Cpt. Smoker, threw Luffy to the ground.

"What's wrong? Finished already?" he taunted Luffy.

_Luffy… Please get up!_

He did get up. "Gum-Gum Gatling!" Luffy yelled as he stretched his rubber arms to punch Smoker. He was punching so fast; I only saw many, many arms.

But since Cpt. Smoker could turn into smoke, he didn't even bother dodging Luffy's attacks.

"White Blow!" Cpt. Smoker yelled.

A huge plume of smoke trapped Luffy against the side of a building. "You bastard!" Luffy yelled. "Gum-Gum Pistol!" But his hand just went through Cpt. Smoker.

"You get it? You can't even enter the Grand Line," he said while disappearing. He appeared right behind Luffy and put his huge hand on Luffy's head. "Didn't I tell you that?" He floated up and slammed Luffy to the ground.

I really wanted to do something, but I still had trouble moving, it wasn't as bad as before, but it was still enough for me to be down for the count.

But, if I did stop time, I'd feel better, only to feel worse after… I didn't want to take that chance. If I wasn't careful with my time, I could die. But Luffy could die, too! It was like to parts of my brain were at war together. One side wanted to save Luffy at the expense of myself, while the other side trusted Luffy and knew he'd be ok and I should just rest.

"Wanted for a thirty million Berry bounty?" Cpt. Smoker asked, still with his iron grip on Luffy. He laughed and said, "You're running out of your devil's luck."

He went to reach for the weapon on his back, but was stopped by a man in a green cape.

"Don't be so sure," said the cloaked man.

"You're…" Cpt. Smoker said.

"What? Who's that? Who's that?" Luffy asked.

"The government wants your head," Cpt. Smoker said to the man.

"The world is waiting for our answer," he replied.

I didn't get it.

The weather changed dramatically seconds later. All of the wind suddenly increased speed dramatically. I held onto Luffy's hat for dear life as the wind picked us all up.

Literally.

It was strong enough to pick up even Cpt. Smoker!

But it was over almost as soon as it started.

I was thrown into a stone wall by the wind. But I realized that everyone else was there as well, except Nami.

"What happened?" Luffy asked.

Sanji got up quickly and ran over to me. "Magnolia-chan! Are you ok?"

My head was hurting, but I was significantly less exhausted than before. "I'm ok," I said.

He held out his hand and helped me up. Usopp, Luffy, and Zoro all stood up as well.

I could hear Nami calling Luffy in the distance. "Luffy!" she yelled.

I looked around and realized we were at the harbor! She was in the _Going Merry_ and was already sailing out.

"We'd better hurry up or the ship will be swept away!" Sanji said. "Can you walk, Magnolia-chan?" I nodded.

Luffy ran towards a stair case railing and grabbed on. "Gum-Gum Rocket!" His arms sent him shooting towards us and the _Going Merry._ We flew onto the ship. I landed on top of everyone by accident. I patted the top of my head to make sure Luffy's hat was still there, which it was.

I got up quickly and said, "Is everyone ok?"

They all respond with variants of 'yes'.

I gave Luffy his hat back.

The waves were getting really rough in the storm. I was about to climb up to the crow's nest when Sanji told me to get inside.

"If you're up there, you're a better target for lighting!" he said. "Get inside, quickly! We'll handle it out here!"

"Are you su-"

"GO!" he yelled.

I ran inside to escape the freezing rain. I went into the room Nami and I shared and got out an extra blanket and wrapped it around myself. I was so cold. The warmth of the blanket felt like a nice hug.

I changed out of my wet clothes rather clumsily because of the irregular rocking of the ship due to the strong waves of the ship. I wrapped the warm blanket around me and cuddled into my bed to keep warm.

_I hope everyone's gonna be ok out there…_

* * *

><p>Later that day, the weather was still stormy and Nami called another meeting concerning the entrance to the Grand Line. This time, it was in the kitchen.<p>

She slapped a map on the table and said, "I'd heard rumors about it, and it's drawn on this map, too! If it really is true, then the entrance to the Grand Line is a mountain!"

"We have to crash into a mountain?" I asked.

"You can't be serious…" Zoro said.

"I didn't believe it myself, but the map has canals that lead to the mountain. That might mean we have to go up it!" she said.

"What about gravity…?" I asked. "How's that even possible?"

"Yeah! A ship can't climb a mountain!" Zoro said.

"But that's what the map says," she said.

"Nami-san would never say anything that's wrong!" Sanji said.

Zoro sighed. "You stole that map from Buggy, right? Can we really trust it?"

"Well, a map's a map," Nami said.

"Maybe the canals go through the mountain!" I said.

"That would make a bit more sense, but the way it's drawn here, it goes over the mountain," she said.

"Cool!" Luffy said. "We get to climb a mountain!"

"Why can't we just go directly into the Grand Line instead of using the entrance?" Zoro asked.

"We can't!" Luffy said.

"Yep, and there's a reason," Nami said.

"It's much cooler to climb a mountain!" Luffy supplied.

She hit him in the head and said, "That's not the reason!"

"Woah…" Usopp said, who'd been quiet this whole conversation. "The storm stopped!"

"What?" Nami asked. "That can't be… It should've led us directly to the entrance."

We all went above deck to see what happened. It was a downright nice day! It was almost as if the storm hadn't even happened.

I looked to Nami. She looked absolutely terrified. "Oh no!" she said. "We've entered… the Calm Belt!"

"What's that?" Usopp asked.

I looked to the direction where we came. The storm was still over there, but it was like the clouds hit and invisible wall and stopped right before we entered the Calm Belt.

"This is no time to be standing around!" Nami yelled. "Go grab the oars and start rowing as fast as you can!" She looked to me and said, "Hurry and get up there!"

I saluted her and said, "Of course, ma'am!"

I ran to the rope ladder and climbed up to the crow's nest as fast as I could. Nami was still screaming at all the boys when I got up.

That's when the boat started shaking. I grabbed hold of the side of the look-out post and held on tight. I looked over the rail and saw a huge number of Sea Kings. And we were on top of one of them!

I heard the Sea King breath in a couple times, like it was going to sneeze. "Ahh… Ahh… Ahh… CHOO!"

I held on for dear life as the _Going Merry_ was sent flying back into the stormy seas. I couldn't hear anyone because of the storm.

I stood up and looked out my telescope. "Guys! I see the mountain!" I yelled. "It's close!"

We were heading straight for the Red Line. I could barely see the top of it, even with my telescope because of the dark clouds.

I looked at the mountain and saw that there really was a river flowing up the mountain.

They aimed the ship perfectly into the entrance and we started sailing up the mountain!

"WE DID IT!" everyone cheered!

It was a bit scary, going up a steep mountain and going above the clouds, but once we got the top, it was almost like a roller coaster!

But that's when I saw something… I looked through my telescope to get a better view of it.

"G-Guys!" I said. "There's a giant whale down there!"

I don't think anyone could hear me because of the wind and mist, but I could already hear it wailing.

"There's a whale!" yelled. "Up ahead! There's a huge whale!"

"Who cares?!" Luffy said happily. "Go!"

"No, I don't mean huge, I mean flipping enormous! Like, mountain sized!" I yelled.

The mist cleared and everyone saw what I was saying.

"Oh crap!" Usopp yelled.

Nami started screaming.

"It's a whale!" Luffy said.

"That's what I already said!" I yelled. I could see the whale more clearly now. It looked like it had horrible scars on its nose. I howled even louder than before.

"Wh-what are we gonna do?!" Usopp asked frantically.

"Wanna fight?" Luffy asked.

"Stupid!" Nami said. "There's no way in hell we can fight that!"

"But our path is blocked!" Usopp said. "What're we gonna do?!"

"Wait, where are its eyes?" Sanji asked.

"That's right! It might not've noticed us yet!" Nami said.

I looked through my telescope quickly and said, "The eyes are on the sides of its head."

"We're gonna run into it if we don't do something!" Zoro said. "Can we go in through the side?!"

"The rudder's broken!" Usopp said.

_Oh crap! _I thought._ How could the rudder have broken?!_

"Oh!" Luffy said. "I've got an idea."

He ran inside the ship somewhere, along with Sanji and Zoro. I assumed Sanji, Zoro and Usopp were trying to fix the rudder, but I had no idea what Luffy was doing.

We were speeding directly into the whale when all of a sudden, a cannon went off. It slowed down our momentum dramatically and we barley nudged the whale. The only thing that happened was that the head of the goat on the front of the ship broke off.

I felt like I could breathe. "Ahh… Thank God we stopped…" I said, relieved.

But then I had a thought… _What if the ship nudging the whale made it notice us?!_

I looked up to look at its gigantic eyes, but it wasn't looking at us. I sighed and sank into the crow's nest. "Too much has gone on today…" I complained.

"Let's get out of here before it's too late!" Zoro yelled.

The boys, Usopp, Zoro and Sanji, pulled out the oars and rowed quickly away from the whale.

The whale let out a huge moan that was so loud, even covering my ears made no effect.

We were sailing directly in front of its eye. I was lying down in the crow's nest for fear of it noticing me because I was up the highest on the ship.

That's when I heard Luffy yell at the whale. "You… What the hell did you do to my special seat?!"

He directly punched it in the eye.

_WE'RE DONE FOR!_ I thought.

It looked directly at us.

"How was that?! Bring it on, you bastard!" Luffy taunted.

Everyone on deck collectively kicked him in the face, telling him to shut up.

It let out a huge roar in frustration and opened its mouth revealing huge teeth.

Our ship started getting sucked into its mouth. The _Going Merry_ sailed unwillingly into his mouth. I was holding onto the flag pole for dear life as the waves crashed against our ship, threaten to capsize it.

Luffy almost went overboard, but he grabbed onto the whale itself as we sailed deeper and deeper into its mouth.

Finally, it closed its mouth.

We're going to be digested! No… This is not a good way to die! I don't wanna die!

But when it closed its mouth, a sky appeared above.

"What…?" I asked. "Weren't we eaten…?"

I went down the rope ladder to join everyone on deck.

"What's going on…?" I asked.

"Is this a dream?" Usopp asked.

"Yep. Definitely a dream," Zoro said.

There was a small island with a house on it.

"Must be an illusion…" he said.

That's when a giant squid popped up out of the water. Nami, Usopp and I all screamed. Zoro and Sanji were ready to fight it, but it suddenly was harpooned three times from the direction of the small house. It was dragged back into the water.

"Looks like someone lives there," Zoro said.

"Let's hope it's really a person…" Sanji said.

"I wanna go home!" Nami whimpered.

"Luffy went somewhere, too!" Usopp said. "What's gonna happen to us?"

"Come to think of it…" I said. "Where is Luffy-san?"

"Who knows?" Nami said.

_What if he's at the bottom of the ocean…? He can't swim!_

"Wait!" Usopp said. "Should we fire the cannon at the island?!"

"No, hold on a sec…" Sanji said. "Someone's coming out."

He was right. I could see a silhouette off a person in the door way. The man in the doorframe pulled the harpoon ropes. He stepped into the light.

"It's a flower!" Sanji said.

"Flower?" Zoro asked.

I looked at the man, and sure enough, he was brightly colored and had a flower petal hat on.

"Oh wait, it's a person," he said.

"That old man killed a Great King Squid with a single hit…" Nami said.

"Cool!" I said.

"Was he just fishing… or did he do it to save us…?" Sanji asked.

He walked over to his lawn chair while intensely staring at us, sat down and started reading a newspaper.

"Say something!" Sanji yelled angrily.

The man looked up.

"If you wanna fight, we'll fight!" Usopp warned needlessly. "We've got cannons!"

"You better not, or someone will die," he said, staring intently at us. It was almost creepy.

"Oh? Just who're you saying will die?" Sanji asked, smirking.

"Me," said the man.

I laughed, but Sanji got really mad at the old man.

"Well, calm down," Zoro said, putting a hand on Sanji's shoulder. "Hey, old man. Tell us where we are and who you are."

"When asking someone a question, isn't it proper to give your name first?" he said.

"Yeah, good point, sorry-" Zoro said.

"My name is Crocus," said the man. "I'm the lighthouse keeper of the Twin Capes. I'm seventy-one years old and a Gemini. My blood type is AB."

"CAN I CUT HIM?!" Zoro asked angrily.

I looked to Nami. "He's funny…" I said. "In a weird way."

"Y-yeah…" she said.

"You're asking where we are?" Crocus asked. How dare you run your mouth when you barged into my private resort?" He paused and said, "Does it look like we're in a rat's belly?"

"So we were eaten by a whale after all…" Usopp said.

"What's gonna happen?!" Nami asked. "I don't wanna be digested!"

"The exit is over there," he said, pointing to a door.

_WAIT! _I thought to myself._ Exit and being inside animals can only mean one thing… EWWW!_

"That's just gross…" I said.

Usopp noticed that everything was painted to look like the sky.

"Call it a doctor's playful mind," Crocus said.

"Ok, let's get out of here," Zoro said.

A huge wave suddenly came out of nowhere and I fell to the ground and bonked my nose. "Ow…" I said, sitting up. I touched my nose to see if it was ok, which it was. "Whew."

"It's started…" said Crocus.

"What's started?!" Usopp demanded to know.

"This whale…" he said. "Laboon has started hitting his head against the Red Line."

_That's why it has those scars on his nose…_

"He was also howling at the sky!" Nami said.

"What does it mean?" Usopp asked.

"He's suffering!" she said. "Maybe he's trying to kill the whale from inside his body!"

"That's horrible!" I said.

"Ok, let's hurry up and get out. If we don't get a move on, we'll be digested," Zoro said.

"Yeah," Sanji said. "Let's get out of here."

"With waves like this, we've gotta row!" Zoro said.

"Let's hurry!" Nami said. "I'm worried about Luffy!"

"He's outside. I saw him fly out of the mouth," Zoro said.

That's when Crocus jumped into the stomach water.

"Hey, Maggie-chan, get into the kitchen. We'll handle it out here, 'kay?" Nami said.

"Ok," I said, walking into the kitchen.

* * *

><p>A couple minutes later, Luffy and two people arrived on the ship, but Luffy knocked them unconscious and we went onto the old man's island.<p>

"What're you doing inside this whale?" Nami asked the two strangers.

Luffy started climbing the palm tree on the island.

"They're thugs from a nearby town," Crocus explained. "They're after whale meat. If they capture Laboon, it can feed the townspeople for at least two to three years, since it's the world largest whale. I won't let them eat him. There's a reason he keeps hitting himself on the Red Line and howling at the Reverse Mountain."

"Reason?" Nami asked.

"Yeah. He's a whale with a human heart," Crocus said. "And he's been waiting patiently for a certain pirate group for fifty long years." He told us the story of Laboon. How the pirates loved him and played with him, but then ditched him and broke their promise of coming back to see him.

I was somewhat touched and disgusted with the pirates. It was so cute how the whale still loved them even after the horrible pirates abandoned him!

We exited the whale soon after hearing the story, but Crocus followed us. We took the strangers on board with us. One of them was a girl with bright blue hair, and the other was a man with a '9' tattooed on each of his cheeks. The man was called Mr. 9 and the woman was Ms. Wednesday.

We actually exited from the side of the whale, instead of the back.

"I told Laboon everything," Crocus said. "But he doesn't accept my words. Since then, he started howling at Reverse Mountain and started slamming his body against the Red Line."

"What a whale…" Sanji said.

"When there's no point in waiting…" Usopp said.

"It's horrible, what they did to poor Laboon…" I said.

Luffy grabbed the mast and started running and yelling at the whale. "GUM-GUM FLOWER ARRANGEMENT!" He stuck the mast straight into Laboon's head.

"Isn't that the mast…?" Zoro said.

"Yep. From our ship," Sanji said.

"It's the main mast…" Usopp said. "Hey! Don't break the ship!"

Laboon started howling and thrashing in pain, making our ship rock wildly.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Zoro, Sanji, Nami, and Usopp all yelled at Luffy.

The jumped into the air and landed face-first on the Red Line.

"Hey, kid!" Crocus yelled.

Luffy started fighting the whale, but it was very one-sided on the whale's part.

"It's a draw," Luffy said. The whale stopped attacking him. "I'm strong, aren't I? You wanna defeat me, don't you?! Our fight isn't over yet! So we have to fight again! Your buddies're dead, but I'm your rival forever!"

That when I realized what he was doing.

"We definitely have to fight again in order to decide who is stronger," Luffy said. "After going around the Grand Line, we'll come back to see you again! When I come back, let's fight again!"

I could've sworn I saw the whale crying, but I didn't think that was possible. Laboon howled happily for the first time in fifty years.

Luffy proceeded to paint a weird version of our flag on Laboon's head.

"This is the symbol of our promise to fight again!" he said. "Until we come back, don't remove that mark by hitting your head. Got that?!" He waited, as if the whale was going to respond. "All right!"

That's when we noticed Ms. Wednesday and Mr. 9 had run away.

Luffy picked something up that looked kinda like a compass. "What the heck is this?" he asked.

Since Usopp was fixing the mast, I really had nothing to do. That's when Nami screamed and said her compass was broken.

"You need a log pose to travel around the Grand Line," Crocus said. "It's a special compass that can record magnetism."

"That that what this is?" Luffy asked, holding up the strange compass he found.

"Yeah, that's it," said Crocus. "Without the log pose, it's impossible to travel in the Grand Line."

Nami punched Luffy and yelled, "How come you have one?!"

"It's what those two weirdoes dropped on the ship," he said. "Why'd you hit me?"

"Just going with the flow," she said.

I laughed. Nami took the log pose from Luffy and inspected it.

Crocus went on to explain how it worked. He also mentioned the last island in the Grand Line, Raftel. The only one in history to ever go there was Gold Rodger, the King of the Pirates. It's suspected that the One Piece is hidden there.

"We'll have to take good care of this, huh," Nami said, strapping the log pose on her wrist. "It's the key to our journey."

All of a sudden, Sanji kicked Luffy and he was about to shatter the log pose.

"Tick Tock!" I said quickly. I pulled the log pose off of Nami's hand got it safely away from the incoming Luffy. "Un-tock."

Time started again and Luffy flew onto the ground.

"Where did the log pose go?!" Nami asked. "LUFFY! YOU BROKE IT!"

"No," I said. "I saved it!" I held up the log pose.

Nami hugged me and said, "Thank you so much, Maggie-chan! You're a life-saver!"

"No problem," I said.

She put the log pose back on her wrist and scolded Sanji and Luffy for being too wild.

Laboon washed on shore with the two strangers. Sanji helped Ms. Wednesday up.

"Hey," Mr. 9 asked. "We have a favor to ask."

They said they wanted a ride to their village, Whiskey Peak.

"That's a weird name," Luffy said.

"What happened to your own ship?" Nami asked.

"It's… broken…" Ms. Wednesday said.

"Isn't that asking a bit much, Mr. 9 after trying to kill the whale?" Nami taunted.

"Placing confidence in your character, we're begging you!" Ms. Wednesday said.

"We'll definitely return the favor," Mr. 9 said.

Crocus told us not to do it because they were dishonest people.

"Yeah sure," Luffy said. "You can ride with us."

"What?!" they both asked, in shock.

"Did you say Whisky Peak? Let's go there," he said.

"Really?" Usopp asked. "You serious?"

"What's the problem? Don't worry about the small stuff," he said.

We set sail as soon as the log pose stored the magnetism.

With the mast repaired, I went up to the crow's nest and sighed, looking out into the Grand Line.

I had a feeling something big was about to start.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	8. Fishy Town

It snowed the next day, much to the surprise and befuddlement of everyone on board.

I was stuck up in the crow's nest with three blankets, a coat, earmuffs, and a scarf. I was still freezing.

I was very thankful when Sanji came up and gave me a large cup of hot chocolate to keep me warm.

Usopp and Luffy were making snowmen out on the deck, which soon turning into destroying each other's snowmen. That turned into a snowball fight.

Nami ordered Sanji to start shoveling snow off the deck, which he happily agreed too.

Suddenly, I saw lightning up ahead.

"What…?" I asked, shivering. "L-l-lightning during a s-s-s-snow storm?" I took a sip of the hot coco to warm me up. "Ahh…" I said. "Much be-"

A huge gust of wind sent chills up my spine and it started snowing even harder, there was more lightning, too. I sneezed

"L-L-L-L-Luffy-s-s-s-san!" I shivered. "C-c-c-can I p-please come down? I'm going t-t-t-to turn into an i-i-ice cube…"

"Huh?" Luffy asked. "You're still up there?!"

"Yeah…" I said.

"Magnolia-chan!" Sanji said. "I'll rescue you from this horrible winter weather!" He climbed up the rope ladder and picked me up, bringing me into the warmth of inside the kitchen.

"Th-th-thank you, S-Sanji-san," I said.

I snuggled up next to the stove, which Nami turned on for heating purposes and warmed up. I realized I left my hot chocolate up in the crow's nest and made a mental note to go back out and get it as soon as the snow stopped.

That's when Nami screamed.

"What?!" I asked.

"No way!" she said, looking at the log pose. She ran out of the kitchen and yelled, "Turn the ship around 180 degrees! Hurry! The ship turned around and is going the opposite direction!" She looked at the log pose and said, "When I only looked away from it for a second…"

"Are you really a navigator?" Ms. Wednesday jeered. "In this sea, you can't trust the winds, sky, waves, clouds, anything. The only thing that doesn't change is the direction the log pose points. Understand?"

Nami kicked Ms. Wednesday and Mr. 9 out onto the deck and took their blankets. She gave one to me and I took it graciously. "Stop bossing me around!" she yelled at them. "Go help already!" She walked out of the kitchen and started spouting orders at the crew.

I felt a bit warmer now.

But that's when everything stopped. The dark clouds rolled away like the blizzard never even happened. There was a warm breeze in the air.

_I hate the Grand Line…_ I thought.

I turned off the stove and went down into our room to put the blankets, coat, and scarf back.

I went back up on deck and up into the crow's nest. The sun felt nice after the horribly cold storm.

There was an iceberg directly up ahead, but Sanji called it out before me. The sunny weather suddenly turned foggy and humid.

_What the heck is going on with this weather?!_

We avoided the iceberg by a hair and sailed back into the direction Nami's log pose pointed. But apparently, there was water leaking in on the bottom deck. Usopp went to go patch the hole immediately.

That's when the weather changed again, the fog dispersed and black clouds rolled in, bringing a huge gust of wind. The waves got immensely stronger and larger. Nami ordered the men to unfurl the sails. With this strong wind, we'd tip over if the sails were down! I crouched low in the crow's nest to keep clear of the strong wind.

Everyone was working quickly to make the ship sailable. There was even more lightning and I was scared that I was going to get electrocuted.

But everything stopped and became perfectly fine again within minutes. Everyone was passed out on the deck from physical and mental exhaustion.

Except Zoro, who actually slept through the whole ordeal. Nami punched him for that.

That's when I saw the island! "Guys!" I yelled. "Whiskey Peak is just up ahead!"

The island looked like it had giant cacti on it. I took out my telescope to get a better look. Magnified, the spikes on the cacti looked like… graves…

_Something's a little off about this place… _I thought._ I'll be sure to be on my guard._

Before we even docked, Ms. Wednesday and Mr. 9 jumped off the ship saying, "If we're linked by fate, we'll meet again. Bye bye, baby!" Then… splash.

"They're… gone?" I asked.

Luffy decided we were going to land on the island anyway. There was a river that led inland. Since my job was done for the time being, I climbed down the rope ladder and went to go get my bag from inside our room.

Usopp was paranoid that there were monsters on the island. Luffy said that if we see some, we could just leave.

"Wait a second," Nami said. "We have to stay on this island for a certain period of time."

"Why?" Luffy asked.

"The log pose!" Nami reminded them. "We have to store the magnetism, or else we can't go to the next island. Each island has a different amount of time to store the log. Some require several hours, while others require days."

"Then even if this is a monster island that we want to escape from right away, we can't leave!" Usopp said frantically.

"Yep," Nami said.

"Well, we can think about that when it happens," Luffy said nonchalantly. "Let's go!"

"Luffy's right," Zoro said. "Let's go. It's not worth thinking about right now."

"Well, no matter what happens, I'll protect Nami-san and Magnolia-chan," Sanji said.

That made me feel a little better, but I didn't think monsters were going to be a problem here.

"H-hey, wait…" Usopp said, clutching his throat. "My chronic illness is suddenly… My 'don't go to the island' disease is…"

I rushed over to him, wanting to help. "Are you ok, Usopp-san?!" I asked.

"He's lying…" Nami said.

"Oh…" I said, embarrassed. "Sorry."

"Ok, we're going in," Nami said. "Make sure you're ready to run as well as fight."

I saluted Nami and said, "Of course."

Usopp and I were very nervous about landing on the island. Sanji made it even creepier.

"I wonder what'll appear…" he said. "Oh, look… I see something."

"Yeah," Luffy said. "Something's moving."

I winced, worried about what it could be.

"Humans…?" Sanji said, looking out. "Humans are there!"

"Be careful, guys…" Nami said.

Usopp had his new goggles over his eyes with his slingshot ready to fire. "Dammit… Since it's come to this, I've prepared myself!"

I listened closely and hear people screaming… No. Cheering! They were cheering.

"Welcome to the Grand Line!" they cheered.

_We're being welcomed…?_

"What's going on…?" Sanji asked.

Luffy laughed and said, "They seem nice!"

_Too nice… _I thought._ What kinda town would welcome pirates to this degree?_

There was confetti everywhere, people with welcome signs, many streamers, and people playing musical instruments.

Sanji was sold. "Woah! There're lots of cute girls!"

Luffy and Usopp were letting the cheers go to their heads.

We docked our ship and climbed off. I hid behind Nami.

"Wel-" a man said before he coughed. "Ma! Ma! Ma! Welcome. My name is Igarappoi. I'm the mayor of Whiskey Peak."

"I'm Luffy. Nice to meet you," he said. "You went a little overboard at curling your hair."

He was right. The man had almost tube-like curls wrapping around his head.

"Whiskey Peak is a town that thrives on making liquor and music," Igarappoi said. "Hospitality is the pride of our town. As for our proud liquor, it's as bountiful as the seawater. Would you allow us to throw a party for you so that we can hear your tales of-" he coughed again. "Ma! Ma! Ma! your tales of adventure?"

"We'll be glad to!" Luffy, Sanji, and Usopp said together.

"Three idiots…" Nami observed. She turned to Igarappoi and asked, "How long will it take for the log of this island to be stored?"

"Log?" he asked. "Forget about the boring stuff. Please just rest after such a long journey."

That was a major red flag to me. It seemed to me like he didn't want to tell her.

"Now, everyone!" he yelled. "Prepare for the party! Sing to entertain the adventurers!"

"Party time!" all the townspeople cheered.

Afternoon turned into night as the town threw us a huge party. There was a lot of loud music, alcohol, drunken people, and contests.

Igarappoi offered everyone a drink of wine.

"I don't drink," Nami said. "No thank you."

"And I'm twelve…" I said.

"Not to worry!" he said, pushing it closer. "Its flavor is wine itself, but it doesn't contain alcohol."

Nami took a sip and said, "Wow! This is delicious!"

"To celebrate our good grape harvest, we'll have our usual toast competition!" Igarappoi announced. "You have to continue to toast and the last one standing is the winner. Would you like to join?"

"No thanks," Nami said. "I can't drink that much."

But what he said next, gave her more motivation than needed. "The prize money for the winner is 100,000 Berries!"

She stood up, holding her cup and demanded another cup.

Both Zoro and Nami participated. I looked at the cup in front of me, a little weary.

_What if they spiked it…?_ I asked myself.

Everyone looked like they were having a great time except me. Despite the fact that I wasn't comfortable around people I didn't know, I was still hung up on the fact that I saw gravestones on the cacti.

_Wait… _I thought._ Every town needs a graveyard… Maybe it's just there weird custom or something._

I decided to let the whole grave thing go and tried to enjoy myself. But still, some part of me had a nagging feeling things weren't what they seemed to be in this town.

Zoro finally quit after his thirteenth cup and went to sleep right there on the couch. Nami accidentally drank my cup, so I had an excuse to pretend to go to sleep as well.

* * *

><p>I actually did fall asleep for a little while, regardless of the loud atmosphere of the party.<p>

When I woke up, I still pretended I was asleep and shifted on the couch so I could look at my watch without 'waking up'.

It was almost two in the morning and the party was still going on. Not many people were still up, though.

I waited about thirty minutes for the whole town to go seemingly silent.

I heard a couple voices outside the bar where we were all sleeping.

"What happened to them?" I heard Ms. Wednesday say.

"They've fallen…" Igarappoi said, "to hell."

_Wh-what…?!_

That's when a door opened and another voice joined the conversation. "Jeez… They were a stubborn bunch, apart from the little girl, so I added a little alcohol to their drinks."

_They're obviously talking about us…_

"Was it really necessary to put on an elaborate act…?" said the woman's voice that had just joined the conversation. "They're just weak-looking brats. We should just beat them at the harbor. Also, we didn't have our hopes up for the whale meat anyway."

"Hey!" Mr. 9 said. "We did try out best!"

"Calm down," Igarappoi said. "Look at this. I've checked them out beforehand."

"Thirty million Berries?!" the rest asked.

_They must be talking about Luffy's wanted poster._

"And the little girl is wanted by the navy, too," he continued. "It's foolish to judge a pirate's ability based on looks, Miss Mon-" he coughed. "Ma! Ma! Ma! Ms. Monday."

That was far enough. I'd heard enough to act. I stood up and walked over to Luffy, who was sleeping on the floor.

"Luffy-san!" I whispered.

No matter what I did, he wouldn't wake up…

I looked around and thought I should wake up Zoro next. I went to shake him awake, but he caught my hand.

I gasped.

"I heard everything," he whispered. "I wasn't asleep. I need to get out of here without being seen." He looked at me smirking and said, "Think you can help me with that?"

I nodded. I fished out my handcuffs and put them on the wrist he was holding. I attached the other end to his wrist.

"Tick-Tock," I said quietly, stopping time. "Ok, ready," I said, talking in a normal voice.

He got up and started walked out the door, needless to say, I followed close behind.

When we were outside, I saw the four of them frozen. It was definitely Igarappoi, Mr. 9, Ms. Wednesday, and a dark skinned woman with pig tails named Ms. Monday. She was very muscular, and had an appearance that did not fit her high voice.

Zoro was looking around. He pointed with his other hand to the roof of the bar we just exited. "Let's go there," he said.

"How?" I asked. "There isn't a ladder or a flight of stairs…"

He sighed and said, "We gotta jump."

I laughed and said, "I can't jump that high. Nope! No way."

"Exactly," he said, picked me up. "_You_ can't."

He jumped up onto the roof with ease. He set me down and I rolled my eyes. I got out the key to the handcuffs and said, "Ok, I'm going back in…"

"Thanks, Magnolia," he said. "I'll handle these guys, so try to stay out of sight."

"I'm going back inside and pretend to be asleep," I said.

I unlocked him from the handcuffs and he became frozen. I frowned and tried to figure out how to get down.

Finally, I just jumped and landed, surprisingly enough, on my feet. I mentally applauded myself and walked back inside the bar. I sat down on the couch and looked at my watch.

"Five minutes, alright, I can live with that," I said.

I got back into the same position I was before and said, "Un-Tock."

Time started again and I felt weak, but since I was lying down, I was ok.

"What about them?" Ms. Monday asked.

"What do we do?" Mr. 9 asked.

"If we kill them, the bounty drops by thirty percent for the Straw Hat, we won't get any money for the girl since she's a missing child," Mr. 8 said. "Capture them alive."

"Sorry…" I heard Zoro say. "Do you mind letting them sleep?"

I couldn't help but smile as the four outside gasped.

Two people ran outside. "Mr. 8, Ms. Monday! The guy with the bellyband escaped from the room when we weren't looking!" said a random guy.

"He's up there," said Ms. Wednesday.

"You bastard…!" Mr. 8 said angrily. "I thought you were completely asleep! How did you get up there?!"

I heard Zoro chuckle and said, "I had help."

I smiled even wider.

"Swordsmen never make the mistake of letting their guard down that much," he said. "So, let's see if I've got this right. This is a nest of bounty hunters."

_Bounty hunters…? That does make sense from their conversation earlier…_

"You dupe pirates who are in high spirits after entering the Grand Line," he said. "Looks like there're about 100 bounty hunters here… I'll fight you all, Baroque Works!"

Looks like he was right about their name.

"How do you know our company's name?!" Mr. 8 asked, infuriated.

"Used to be in a similar line of work," he admitted. "I was recruited by you guys once, but I rejected the offer. Employees don't know each other's identity and are called by code names, and the boss' identity and whereabouts are a mystery, too."

After a long period of silence, Mr. 8 said, "This is surprising… If you know our secrets, we have no other choice but to kill you. Another gravestone will be added to the Cactus Rocks."

_I KNEW IT! _I thought._ But that's not a good thing…_

I was about to sit up, to go help him, but Zoro's words rang through my ears: "I'll handle these guys, so you try to stay out of sight."

_If that's what you want, Zoro… Alright, then._

"Kill him!" Mr. 8 commanded.

Trusting Zoro, I took the time to actually get some sleep, but I was awoken minutes later by all the gunshots.

That's when I heard Nami was awake, too.

"I knew something was weird with this town!" she said.

I sat up and looked at her. "You're awake too?!" I asked.

"Yep!" she said, getting up. "I'm gonna look for treasure."

I lied back down on the couch and said, "Be careful…" I yawned.

"No, you're coming with me," she said. "In case something happens."

She grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the room.

"Wha…? I'm tired, Nami-chan!" I said. "Let me go!"

"No can do," she said, digging into my purse and attached the handcuffs to hers and my wrist. "In case we get spotted, we can make a quick escape."

I sighed and followed her around, looking for treasure. She complained because apparently there wasn't much.

Soon, the gun fire stopped. Zoro probably had beaten them.

"Ah!" Nami said, hearing the silence. "That's our 'all clear'."

She dragged me outside and we saw all the defeated bodies. We went around a corner and heard voices.

"There're criminals here that are big enough for the boss to send us here to deal with," said a man.

While Nami wasn't paying attention, I unlocked our handcuffs quickly and put them back into my bag.

"These're the boss' words: 'They've found out my secrets'," continued the man. "Of course, I don't even know what kind of secrets, but our company's motto is 'mystery'. If someone finds out the boss' secrets, that's, of course, a sin worthy of death."

Nami and I looked at each other, shocked.

"So, when we very carefully investigated who learned his secrets…" said a woman's voice. "Oh boy, we found out that a VIP from a certain kingdom sneak into Baroque Works."

"Wait a sec!" said Mr. 9. "Although I'm wearing a crown, I'm not a king! I swear!"

"We're not talking about you!" the woman snapped.

"The sinners are those who're missing from Alabasta right now," said the man.

"Die! Igarapapa!" said Mr. 8.

There was an explosion near us.

"I won't let you lay a finger on our princess!" he said.

_Woah… What's happening?!_

"Igaram!" said Ms. Wednesday.

"Igaram, the Squad Captain of Alabasta Kingdom Security…" said the man. "And its princess, Nefertari Vivi. In the name of the Baroque Works' boss, we'll eliminate you two."

Nami and I gasped.

_Ms. Wednesday is a princess…?!_

After a couple explosions and gunshots later, Igaram, aka Igarappoi, aka Mr. 8 said, "Vivi-sama… Don't mind me. Escape from here. For our motherland… Without you… our kingdom will be… Please! Hurry!"

"You think you can escape us?" asked the man.

"Don't mess with me!" Vivi, aka Ms. Wednesday said.

That's when Mr. 9 said, "I don't really get what's going on, but we're a pair. I'll buy you some time! Get going, Ms. Wednesday!"

There was an explosion, and I saw Mr. 9 being flung towards the harbor.

I heard Igaram start begging someone to help. He called the man 'Sir Swordsman'. It was Zoro!

"I promise that you will be rewarded immensely!" Igaram said.

That caught Nami's attention. She stepped out and asked, "Is this 'immense reward' for real?" I followed her, close behind. "I'll take up that offer! How does one billion Berries sound?"

"O-One billion…?!" Igaram asked.

I admit, I was shocked for a second or two, but not surprised. Nami was obsessed with money, after all.

"So, will you promise us the one billion, Squad Captain?" she asked. "If you don't ask for our help, your princess probably will die." She smirked mischievously.

_She's a horrible person…_ I thought.

"A mere soldier like me can't promise such large sums of money…" Igaram said.

She squatted down next to him and said, "You're not suggesting a princess is worth less than that, are you?"

I sighed and looked at Zoro.

"If you're willing to help save the princess, it would be best if you negotiate the terms with her directly," he said.

"Meaning I gotta start by saving her, huh?" she said. "Alright, then. Zoro, go save her."

"Yeah right!" he said, pissed off.

"But I'll let you off the hook for the money you owe me if you do," she said. "You still haven't paid me back the 200,000 Berries yet."

"But I gave you the 100,000 Berries back the same day! Gimme a break!" he said.

"Nope," she said. "I told you a 300% interest. Jeez… Can you even keep a single promise?"

That made him very, very angry. I hid behind Nami. "Dammit!" he yelled, running after the princess.

"Thanks a bunch!" she called after him.

Igaram started droning on and on about how he was ashamed of himself because he couldn't protect the princess.

After Nami failed to comfort him, I sat down next the closest building and yawned.

Nami asked Igaram about Baroque Works, who explained the general gist of it.

"Ok!" Nami said.

I was trying to fall asleep yet again when Nami grabbed my hand and said, "We should probably see how Zoro's doing."

"Nami-chan…" I complained.

We walked towards the sounds of explosions and saw Luffy and Zoro fighting each other.

She snuck up behind them and punched both of them in the face. "STOP FIGHTING!" she yelled. "What the heck are you guys doing?! It's a good thing you managed to keep the girl safe! You almost let a billion Berries get away from us!"

"What are you talking about?" Vivi asked. She was riding a very large duck. "Why did you save me?"

"Yeah… about that…" Nami said. "Will you make a contract with me?"

"Contract?" Vivi asked.

Nami explained what was going on to Vivi and Zoro explained everything that happened while he was sleeping. It turns out they were only fighting because Luffy thought Zoro just cut everyone in town for kicks.

"So there you have it," Nami said. "As compensation, I'd like one billion Berries. You saw how strong these guys are. It's a pretty good offer, if you ask me."

"I can't," Vivi said. "I do appreciate your saving me. Thank you. But Alabasta is in the middle of a civil war… The people revolted, and the kingdom fell into chaos. Then one day, I learned that the populace was being manipulated by this group, Baroque Works! That's why I asked Igaram if there was a way I could infiltrate Baroque Works, to let us see who was pulling the strings."

"Pretty high-spirited princess," Zoro said. "Do did you figure out what they're after?"

She nodded. "The founding of an ideal nation," she said, as if reciting a mantra. "But that's a lie. The actual goal is to take over Alabasta! I have to hurry back and tell everyone what's going on. If I don't do something… If I don't do something…!"

Nami sighed and said, "I see... So that's the deal. Now I get it. There'd be no money during a civil war."

"That's what you're concerned about…?" I asked.

"Hey," Luffy asked. "Who _is_ pulling the strings?"

She gasped. "Th-the boss' identity?!" she asked, almost panicked.

"You know, right?" he asked.

"Don't ask me!" she said. "Don't ask me that! Your lives will be put in danger, too!"

Nami laughed nervously and said, "I'll pass on that."

"Me too…" I said. "They're trying to take over a country! Sounds like they mean business, too…"

"Yes!" Vivi said. "As strong as you are, you'd never stand a chance against-"

"TICK-TOCK!" I yelled, but I didn't freeze time. I just interrupted her to keep her from saying the name.

Vivi gasped and said, "I almost said it! I can't believe I almost said that the boss was one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, Crocodile!"

"Now it just sounds like you wanna get us all killed!" Nami yelled angrily.

All of a sudden, an otter flew away on a hawk's back.

Nami started pouting and threatened to leave, but apparently, the sea otter and the hawk had pictures of us.

"Looks like all four of us are on the hit list for Baroque Works, now," Zoro said.

Vivi apologized profusely.

Luffy laughed and said, "This is exciting!"

"No! No it is not!" I said.

"I don't wanna die!" Nami and I pouted.

That's when Igaram came up to us, wearing a much larger version of Vivi's clothes. He also carried four dummies. "Fear not!" he said. "I have a plan!"

Luffy laughed at him, but Nami and I were sulking.

"Vivi-sama, you know what will happen next; now that they know you know the boss' secrets."

"A thousand or so people will come after you," she said.

Nami and I looked at each other and sulked still further.

"Therefore, I will pretend to be you, like so, and sail straight to Alabasta with four dummies on board."

"These are us?" Luffy asked, poking the dummies.

"Decoy, huh?" Zoro said.

"While the pursuers are busy with me, you will head to Alabasta via normal route," he continued.

Nami stood up in defiance. "Wait a minute!" she yelled. "Who said we were gonna take the princess there?!"

"You did…" I whispered.

"Why not?" Luffy asked. "Sure. We'll do it."

"Crocodile is gonna come after us!" she yelled.

"Is he strong?" Luffy asked.

"He's one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea," Igaram said. "Will you do it?"

Luffy smile and said, "Yeah! Sounds like fun."

* * *

><p>Igaram left on a ship, saying goodbye to Vivi. He told us to take the island-hopping route to Alabasta, instead of using an Eternal Pose to get there. (Eternal Poses are just permanent forms of log poses, meaning they point to one island forever.)<p>

"Please take good care of the princess," he said.

"Of course!" Luffy said.

Igaram set sail towards Alabasta. We waved goodbye as he was about to become out of sight.

That's when the ship exploded.

"They're already after us?!" Nami asked, shocked.

Luffy picked up his straw hat and yelled, "He was a great person!"

"Nami, the log?!" Zoro asked.

"We're ok!" she said. "It's stored up!"

"Hurry! We have to go now!" he yelled.

They were already running for our ship, but Vivi was staring at the fire on the sea.

I hugged her and said, "Vivi-san, if you don't want him to die in vain, please come."

She looked at me, sobbing, and nodded. "Ok," she cried.

We took off running towards the ship.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	9. Little Garden

We got on board the _Going Merry _as quickly as we could and waited for Luffy to come back with Sanji and Usopp.

I climbed up to the crow's nest and got my telescope out and ready. This was going to be a stressful journey for me, looking out for enemy ships and all.

That's when someone weird appeared on our ship.

"Y-you're…!" Vivi said.

"I ran into Mr. 8 a short while ago," said the strange woman.

"You killed Igaram!" Vivi said angrily.

"Who cares about that?!" Luffy yelled. "What're you doing on this ship?! Who are you?!"

"What are you doing here, Ms. All Sunday?!" Vivi asked.

_So she's part of Baroque Works! _I thought.

"What number is she partnered to?" Nami asked.

"She's Mr. 0's partner… the boss!" Vivi said. "She's the only one to know the boss's identity. We followed her to find out who he was."

"More correctly…" she said. "I allowed you to follow me."

"You're the one who told him we discovered his identity, right?!" Vivi said.

"Correct," she said.

"What exactly are you trying to do?!" Vivi asked.

"Good question…" she said. "You were all so intent and serious that I found myself helping out. The idea of a princess trying her hardest to save her kingdom, while making herself an enemy of Baroque Works… It was just so ridiculous."

"DON'T MOCK ME!" Vivi yelled angrily.

Sanji pulled a gun on Ms. All Sunday, Usopp had his slingshot ready, Zoro had a sword ready, and Nami pulled out her rod.

I couldn't really do anything because of where I was… Stuck up in the crow's nest, all I could do was watch.

"I'd appreciate it if you don't point such dangerous objects at me," she said, somewhat angrily.

All of the crew's weapons were knocked out of their hands, even though she didn't move!

_Devil Fruit powers! _I thought.

"Now, now. Don't be hasty," she said. "I don't have a reason to fight."

She took Luffy's hat from him with her Devil Fruit powers and put it on top of her own hat.

"So you're the straw hat captain I've heard so much about… Monkey D. Luffy," she said.

"Gimme my hat back!" he yelled. "Are you trying to start a fight?!"

"Tick-Tock…" I whispered, freezing time.

I climbed down the rope ladder and over to Ms. All Sunday. I took the hat from her head and put it back on Luffy's head.

"Un-Tock," I said.

"Oh! My hat!" Luffy said. "Thanks, Maggie!"

"Welcome," I said.

Ms. All Sunday was staring at me with an unnerving smile. "A princess being protected by a handful of pirates… How unlucky. But what's even more unlucky is the course your log pose indicates," she said, still staring at me. "The name of the next island is Little Garden. We don't even need to do anything. You'll be wiped out before you even reach Alabasta."

"Will not!" Luffy said.

She was still staring at me! I was getting creeped out.

"Don't you think getting yourself wiped out is foolish?" she asked. All of a sudden, an Eternal Pose appeared in Vivi's hands. "You can skip Little Garden with that. It points to the island just before Alabasta: Nothing At All Island. None of our employees know that course, so no one will chase you."

"What..?" Nami asked. "She's a good person?"

"Why're you giving this to us?!" Vivi asked.

"It's a trap," Zoro said.

"Is it, now?" she asked, tilting her head to the side, but still looking at me.

Luffy grabbed the Eternal Pose from Vivi and broke it with his bare fist. "Who cares about that?!" he yelled.

Nami kicked him in the face, yelling, "You idiot! What if she's actually a good person?!"

"You're not the one who decides this ship's course!" he said to Ms. All Sunday.

"I see. That's too bad," she said, walking away. She finally dropped her gaze from me. "I don't hate high-spirited people. So if you survive, let's meet again." She jumped off the ship and onto a turtle she used to sail away.

Vivi collapsed to her knees and said, "I can't tell what that woman is thinking!"

"Neither can I…" I murmured.

With the tension eased, I went back up to the crow's nest. Usopp and Sanji demanded to know what was going on.

I sat up there, thinking.

_Why was she staring only at me…?_ I asked myself. _Does she know me or something?_

We kept our course headed towards Little Garden, even though Ms. All Sunday said we would die.

But then again, why should we trust her?

* * *

><p>A couple uneventful days later, I finally saw the next island with my telescope!<p>

"Guys!" I yelled. "I can see the island! We're close!"

This got everyone pretty hyped up and itching to see the newest island on our Grand Line adventure. Everyone gathered at the front of the ship as I climbed down from the crow's nest. Nami looked at her log pose and official said that it was the next island we were stopping at, Little Garden.

We found a small river and sailed deep into the island. From what we could see from the ship, it seemed like a jungle island. Vines and huge plants tangled the landscape.

"This place doesn't quite fit its cute name," Nami said.

I nodded in agreement.

"We have to be careful," Vivi said. "I'm worried about what Ms. All Sunday was saying."

"A-Are you saying… m-monsters are gonna appear?!" Usopp asked, panicked.

"Who knows?" Luffy said casually.

"Let's just get the log pose filled and go!" Usopp said.

"I doubt it'll be stored that quickly," Nami said.

"We also have to stock up on food soon," Sanji said. "We didn't get anything from the last town."

"Well, I hope there's a barbeque restaurant here!" Luffy said.

"Like hell there'd be one!" Sanji yelled.

"But you said we were going to stock up on food," Luffy said.

"We'll collect food later," he said.

"But it could be dangerous to go ashore," Nami said. She pointed to the bank of the river. "Just take a look at the plants! I've never seen anything like them, even in an encyclopedia."

There was a very loud bird overhead that shrieked and squawked, scaring Nami, Usopp, and myself.

The bird descended upon Sanji and it looked like it was going to pick him up, but he kicked the bird and it flew away.

"Damn bird…" he said.

Right after it flew away, what sounded like a huge explosion came from up ahead.

"Is… Is that something you normally hear in a jungle…?" I asked, a little bit frightened of this island.

"It sounded like a volcano!" Usopp said, wailing in trepidation.

I casually made my way towards the middle of the ship when an abnormally large tiger prowled out of the thick, tangled vines and started growling at us, while inside I was very nervous about this island.

_Yep, staying on the boat. Staying on the freaking boat. Nope. Not gonna even step on foot on the island, I'm staying right here, on this boat. _I thought.

That's when the tiger roared in pain and collapsed dead on the ground.

"What?!" Nami asked. "What happened? This is definitely not normal!"

"It's decided! We're not gonna go ashore!" Usopp said.

"Yeah," Nami said. "We can wait here on the ship until the log is stored."

Zoro dropped the anchor not long after. Luffy was laughing with much curiosity in his eyes.

"Sanji!" he said. "Make a lunch for me! A pirate lunch with lots of meat and no veggies! I smell adventure in the air!"

"Wait!" Nami said. "You're going on the island?!"

"Adventure! Adventure!" Luffy said happily. "Wanna come?"

Sanji went into the kitchen to make Luffy his so called 'pirate lunch', while Nami and Usopp thought he was completely insane.

"Say, can I come with you?" Vivi asked.

"Sure!" Luffy said excitedly.

Vivi said it would get her mind off things and kill time until the log was stored.

"No way!" Nami said. "It may be ok for Luffy, but it's too dangerous for you!"

"Wait…" I said. "Can I come?"

Despite my previous thought, I actually thought being with Vivi and Luffy could be fun for wasting time until the log was stored.

"The more the merrier!" Luffy said. "Anyone else? Zoro? Sanji?"

They both shook their heads. Nami and Usopp were definitely not coming, either.

"Then, I'll make a lunch of love for both Vivi-chan and Magnolia-chan," Sanji said.

"Can you prepare something to drink for Karoo, too?" Vivi asked.

"Of course," he said. "Leave it to me!"

I took a deep breath as I went into the girl's room to get my bag.

When everyone was ready and Luffy had our meals in a backpack, we decided to take off.

Nami kept saying we were all crazy and going to get killed. With Luffy around, I was pretty sure we'd be fine.

Vivi let me ride on the back of Karoo because I was small, while she steered him. And with that, we jumped off the boat, quite literally, and started our adventure in Little Garden.

"See you later!" Vivi called back at the ship.

"Let's go!" Luffy said excitedly.

Luffy was faster than Karoo, which Vivi found surprising, but I expected it.

Luffy stopped unexpectedly at a small stream we passed by. Karoo skid across the wet grass and came to a halt.

"Look, look!" Luffy said. "It's a shellfish that looks like a squid!"

Vivi and I dismounted Karoo and looked into the water. I laughed at the weird creature and said, "Yeah! It kinda does!"

Moments later, huge booms that sounded almost like footsteps sounded from miles away.

"Wh-what's that…?" I asked.

"Ooh! Let's go see!" he said, running towards the booms.

Vivi and I quickly mounted Karoo and ran after Luffy. There was a gigantic long-necked dinosaur eating the leaves off of the tallest trees in the area.

"Why is there a Sea King on land?" he asked, confused.

"I think it's a dinosaur, not a Sea King…" I said.

"Cool!" he said.

"This must be an ancient island!" Vivi said, stunned at the sight in front of her.

_A dinosaur! A real-life dinosaur! _I thought._ Should I be concerned? Probably… Am I? Not right now, at least._

"This island must be stuck in the time of the dinosaurs!" Vivi said. "Because sea travel is so difficult in the Grand Line, some islands haven't been in touch with others in years! All have completely unique cultures. Some are extremely sophisticated, while others that remain in the same form as they were for tens of thousands of years."

While Vivi was speaking, Luffy had already stretched his arms onto the dinosaur's neck in fascination, yelling "So cool!" as he rocketed up.

"Luffy-san!" I yelled.

The dinosaur didn't seem to notice Luffy when he slapped onto its lower neck.

"Don't jump on it!" Vivi scolded.

"But it's a nice view!" he said. "We should have lunch up here."

"It's dangerous, Luffy-san!" I yelled. "You should probably get down!"

"I'll be fine!" he said, sure of himself. "There're huge holes over there! That's a weird landscape…"

"Forget about the landscape!" Vivi said. "Just come down!"

But he wasn't listening, as usual. He hung over the dinosaur's eye and asked it a question. When he got impatient, he stretched him arms around its throat and pointed towards were the 'huge holes' were.

"Who would do something like that?!" Vivi asked.

"That's our captain…" I said. "He may be really strong, but he's very much an airhead."

The dinosaur groaned very loudly and not long after, more giant footsteps came out way.

"I think it might've called to its friends…" I said.

Something huge stepped right next to us. Vivi and I both screamed. "I think you're right!" she said, terrified.

There were at least seven more of the long-necked dinosaurs, along with the one Luffy assaulted.

"Luffy-san!" Vivi yelled. "Come down already!"

Instead of listening, he hopped on top of the tallest one for a better view of the island.

He hopped from one dinosaur to the next because they started trying to eat him. Vivi and I watched in awe and fear.

He slid down one of the dinosaurs' backs and said, "Hey guys! It's fun! You should try this!"

Vivi and I looked at each other with appalled expression. "Is… Is he serious?" she asked.

I nodded and said, "Probably…"

He finally hopped onto the tallest one. This dinosaur flung him into the air and ate him.

"He's been eaten!" Vivi said.

But that's when a giant human came running in with a sword and sliced open its throat. The head of the dinosaur, along with a portion of the neck plopped to the ground. Luffy fell out and was caught in the hand of the giant.

Vivi and I just stared in bewilderment of what just happened.

The giant laughed happily and said with a booming voice, "I was watching. What a lively human, grappling with longnecks in this jungle. You're the first guest in a long time." Luffy asked him a question, but we were too far away to hear. "You're asking me if I'm human?" He laughed again. "I'm Dorry, the Elbaf's strongest warrior!"

"That's… that's a giant…" Vivi said.

"Yeah…" I said.

"We're getting out of here," Vivi said. She patted Karoo and said, "Come on, Karoo. We need to go!"

But Karoo didn't budge. He was either so excited he was frozen, or he was so scared he was frozen, but I guessed the latter.

Luffy pointed to us and the giant laughed. "I'll invite you guys to my home!" he said.

Vivi and I looked at each other in worriment.

The giant bent over and picked Karoo along with us up and Luffy jumped onto the hand we were being held in.

"This is so cool!" he said, looking all around.

I looked around at the island and saw the 'huge holes' that Luffy was talking about. It almost looked like the skeleton of an animal. But it was far too big to be anything that was alive.

_Must be a mountain with caves._ I thought.

* * *

><p>A couple minutes later, back at Dorry's home, we were laughing and Luffy was eating the biggest piece of meat I think I've ever seen. Vivi and I ate our pirate lunches, but Luffy gave his to Dorry.<p>

"This is good meat, giant old guy!" Luffy said.

"Your pirate lunch thing tastes good, but it's a little too small for me," he said, laughing.

"'course it's good!" Luffy said. "That's a special lunch the chef on my pirate ship made!" He took another bite of the meat and said, "Oh yeah. Why are you here all alone, giant old guy? Isn't there a village somewhere?"

"Yeah, there is a village," he said. "It's a warrior's village called Elbaf. It's somewhere in the Grand Line. But there're rules in the village. If we start a fight in the village and both sides can't back off, we are judged by Elbaf's god. He gives divine protection to the righteous one and lets him survive." He paused and said, "I caused a disturbance, and this island is currently the site for a duel between a certain man and myself. Only one can survive; the righteous one. But we haven't been able to settle this for about 100 years!" He laughed casually, like it was no big deal at all.

All of our mouths dropped. "100 years?!" Vivi asked.

"It's nothing surprise, since our life span is at least three times as long as yours," he said.

"But is there any point to continue fighting? It's been 100 years… Can't you just talk it out?" I asked. "It's better than someone dying."

He laughed and said, "That would be helpful if we remembered the reason we're fighting!"

"You don't remember?" Vivi asked.

"Makes sense…" I said. "They've been fighting for so long, they don't even know why; it's just for their pride."

"That's right, little lady!" he said, laughing still, but he stopped when the volcano boomed.

"Well, time to go…" he said, getting up. His face turned serious.

_Maybe the volcano signals when they go fight each other…_ I thought.

He started running into the jungle with his shield and sword in hand. The two giants started fighting each other.

Luffy gasped and fell backwards in awe.

"What? What's wrong?" Vivi asked him.

"What a huge duel!" he said.

* * *

><p>The duel was breathtaking to watch. The ground shook in reaction to their footsteps. We watched them fight for a while, before it ended in another draw.<p>

By the end of the duel I wondered how on earth the island was still floating.

Dorry came back to us with three barrels of alcohol in hand, claiming that the other giant, Broggy had given it to him. It turns out, Nami and Usopp had given it to him.

"Hah!" Luffy said. "They said they wouldn't get off the ship, but they really do like adventure after all!"

"Then you could also say that I got this alcohol from you," Dorry said.

He also told us that it would take a year for the log on this island to be stored.

"Didn't you notice the human skulls lying around?" he asked.

I did, but I didn't want to accept that they were real.

"Those who come to this island die before the log is stored in most cases," he continued. "Some become dinosaur food, some die of starvation, some try to attack us and are killed. They all die…" He sighed. "It seems a year on this island is too long for humans."

"What're we gonna do?" Vivi asked, very concerned. "Even if we could survive a year, I need to get to Alabasta immediately!"

"I'd get bored if we stay here for a year," Luffy said. "Isn't there another way, giant old guy?"

"Well, we do have an eternal pose, but it's to our hometown, Elbaf," he said. "We're basically fighting for the eternal pose. Do you wanna try to take it by force?"

"Nope," Luffy said. "That's not where we wanna go. We just wanna go to the island after this one."

"Yeah," I said.

"Why not go forward randomly?" he asked. "If you're lucky, you'll get there."

Luffy laughed and said, "Maybe we'll do that! We could actually get there!"

Dorry laughed, too. "Come to think of it, there was someone who left before the log was stored…" he said.

"What happened to him?" I asked.

"How should I know?" he said, laughing.

Luffy and he laughed for the longest time, but Vivi looked very mad.

"Vivi-san…" I said. "Are you ok?"

"I don't understand how they can be so calm about this!" she said.

I sighed and said, "Don't think about it so much. Everything will turn out fine, I promise."

She took a deep breath and smiled. "Hearing that is refreshing, Magnolia-san," she said.

Dorry went to take a sip of the third barrel when all of a sudden…

**BOOM!**

The whole barrel exploded in his mouth! Dorry fell back on the rock he was sitting on.

We all stood up, in shock and confusion of what just happened.

"Giant old guy!" Luffy yelled.

He stretched his arms onto the giant's hat and hopped onto him.

"It exploded in his stomach!" Vivi said. "His opponent must've laid the explosive!"

"No, that's not right!" I said. "They wouldn't do something like that if they've been fighting for 100 years!"

"Yeah! No way he'd do something like that!" Luffy said, hopping down.

Dorry sat up, gripping his sword and said, "It wasn't Broggy. We're proud warriors of Elbaf. Who else besides you should I be suspicious of?"

Karoo panicked and ran away.

_He… He suspects us?!_ I thought.

"Let's get out of here!" Vivi said. "It's probably no use saying anything to him!"

"It's probably no use even if we run," Luffy said. He took off his hat and handed it to Vivi. "Hold this and stand back."

"But-"

I grabbed Vivi's hand and walked a little ways away from the angry giant and the even angrier man.

"Why did you-"

"He's the captain," I said. "We follow his orders. If he says to stand back, we do so."

She bit her lip and looked at the two. "Dorry-san's insides are in bad shape… He's in no condition to fight!"

The giant swung his sword with all his strength towards Luffy, which Luffy dodged. He started running up Dorry's sword.

"Gum-Gum-"

Dorry slapped him away with a swing of his shield. Luffy came plummeting down into the ground. He sat up and stretched his arms all the way across the clearing to a tree and rocketed over.

Dorry coughed up blood. Luffy came zooming back, yelling, "Gum-Gum Rocket!"

He slammed into Dorry's stomach and the giant seemed to fall over, coughing up more blood. He regained his balance, dropped his sword, and stepped on Luffy.

Vivi and I cringed in fear that our captain had lost. "Luffy-san!" Vivi and I yelled.

"So he has… the powers of a Devil Fruit…" Dorry said, falling to his knees. He crashed to the ground, defeated.

Vivi and I ran to Luffy, who had just sat up.

"Are you alright?!" Vivi asked, handing him his hat back.

"How's the giant old guy?" he asked.

"Probably ok…" she said. "This was probably for the better. He might not've calmed down."

"I'm angry!" Luffy said. "This wasn't the other giant's fault and my friends would never do a stupid thing like this!"

"Then who would…" Vivi said.

"Someone else must be here…" I said. "That's the only explanation."

Luffy nodded, furrowing his brow in rage.

The volcano erupted once again, Broggy and Dorry's signal to fight.

Dorry tried to stand up, having immense difficulty.

"Wait, giant old guy!" Luffy said. "Don't go!"

"You need to keep still!" Vivi said.

"Don't push yourself!" I said. "You're gravely injured."

"I, Warrior Dorry, am here… At the very least… I will fight to uphold the name of Elbaf!" he said, standing up.

He went over to the cave and picked it up with great difficulty.

"What's he doing…?" I asked.

"Awesome!" Luffy said. "He picked up the giant rock!"

Vivi backed away, holding my hand and said, "Luffy-san…"

"What?" I asked.

He dropped the rock on Luffy. Only his torso was free. "What're you doing, giant old guy?!" Luffy yelled. "Move this rock! Hey!"

Huffing and puffing, Dorry picked up his sword and walked away. "I'm sorry I suspected you," he said. "This is the judgment given by Elbaf, the god of war. I didn't have his divine protection."

"That has nothing to do with this!" Luffy yelled. "If a god told you to die, would you?! This duel has been interfered with! A duel that's been messed with isn't a duel anymore!"

"You've only lived merely ten or twenty years," Dorry said. "You wouldn't understand the grand words of Elbaf!"

"Who gives a crap about that?! Hey! Move this thing! Hey! Giant old guy!" Luffy yelled, backing on the rock.

_If only Vivi hadn't… I could've… Luffy! _I thought._ This is my fault…_

"We have to stop this fight!" Vivi said.

"What can we do?" I asked. "The only one who probably could is Luffy-san, and he's stuck!"

"Who is it?!" Luffy yelled furiously. "Who's putting a damper on the giant's fight?!"

"Oh yeah…" Vivi said. "Karoo's gone."

"Luffy-san!" I said. "I'll try and pull you out!"

I held out my hands and he grabbed them. I started pulling with all my might, but he didn't even budge a bit.

"It's no use, Maggie…" he said. "I'm stuck."

That's when Usopp came running out of the forest. "Luffy! Luffy! Luffy! Luffy!" he yelled. "Terrible news! A dinosaur ate Nami!"

I gasped.

"SERIOUSLY?!" he yelled.

"We were running through the jungle to get away from it, and then suddenly she was gone!" he said, panicking.

"But that doesn't mean she was eaten…" I said. "She might've gotten lost! Or something else…"

"If people from Baroque Works have followed us onto this island, then she might've gotten captured. It makes sense why only Nami-san was targeted and not you," Vivi said.

"EHHH?! Baroque Works is on the island?!" he yelled, panicking even more. "But why didn't they target me?"

"You aren't on their hit list," I said.

"And that alcohol might've been meant for us, too!" Vivi said.

Luffy gasped.

"Alcohol? What alcohol?" Usopp asked.

"Broggy brought your alcohol to Dorry," Vivi said. "When Dorry drank it, it exploded in his stomach."

"And now they're fighting! Dorry-san's injured!" I said. "It's not fair! He'll lose!"

"He up to fight Broggy like that?!" Usopp asked.

"I tried to stop him, but I wound up like this instead!" Luffy said.

"You can't be serious…" he said. "Those two've fought evenly for 100 years! It's like, the most pride-filled battle in the world! They can't settle the fight like this!"

"Exactly!" I said.

There was a loud crash in the distance. We all whirled our heads to see what happened. There was blood being splattered into the sky.

I gasped and knew that Dorry had lost. "It's too late…" I said.

Luffy started banging his head wildly on the ground.

"Luffy!" Usopp said.

"WHO WAS IT?!" he yelled, completely furious. "SHOW YOURSELF!"

"I don't know who we're dealing with, but I'll go take care of them myself!" Usopp said, determined.

"I'll go with you!" Vivi said.

"Me too!" I said.

"No need for that!" said a man off into the distance.

It was Mr. 5 holding Karoo along with Ms. Valentine!

"You guys!" Luffy said.

Vivi gasped as he flung Karoo onto the ground. She ran for her beloved bird and said, "Karoo! Why would you do something like this? He has nothing to do with you!"

"Exactly," he said coldly. "The only one we considered dangerous was the straw hat man. We planned to lure you three out by having this bird squawk, but he refused. That's when Straw Hat took himself out of the picture. We have no use for that thing anymore."

Ms. Valentine laughed and said, "What a stupid bird!"

"Why you…!" Vivi yelled angrily.

"Are you the ones who put a bomb in the alcohol?!" Usopp asked.

"Yes, that was us. Who're you?" Mr. 5 asked. "Is he on the list?"

"No. He must be their friend. But let's make him disappear, too!" Ms. Valentine said.

"So you interfered with the giants' duel!" Usopp said angrily.

"I'll kick their asses!" Luffy said, struggling to get out from under the giant rock.

Vivi stood up and took out two strings with blades attached to the end and swung them on her fingers. "You guys are going down!" she yelled, full of rage.

"So you intend to struggle, Ms. Wednesday?" Mr. 8 said.

"You don't stand a chance against us Officer Agents," Ms. Valentine said.

"Fire Star!" Usopp said, shooting the attack from his trusty sling shot.

I dug out the two pairs of handcuffs, attached them to each of my wrists and got out my dagger.

_Let's do this!_ I thought.

But right as I was ready, Usopp exploded!

"What a pity…" Ms. Valentine said, floating in the air, weightlessly.

"Usopp!" Luffy yelled.

"10,000 Kilo Press!" she said, plummeting down on top of him.

"Tick Tock!" I yelled, stopping time.

I grabbed Usopp out of the way and hid him behind a nearby tree. I ran back over to where I was standing and said, "Un-Tock!"

Time started again and Ms. Valentine smashed only the ground.

When I looked over to Vivi, she was being held by the neck by Mr. 8.

"Vivi-san!" I yelled, running over to help her.

"There's no need to be so upset," he said. "We're not going to kill you just yet."

Ms. Valentine grabbed me by the hands and brought me to my knees. I couldn't move!

"We only came to abduct you two," he said. "On Mr. 3's orders."

"The Wax-Wax Fruit man?!" Vivi asked.

"Yes," he said. "He's a candle man who controls the wax he secretes form his body."

_Logia… _I thought._ We're definitely in trouble!_

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	10. The Day Gets Worse

Mr. 5 had Vivi by the throat and Ms. Valentine had me by the arms.

"Did you honestly think you could escape from Baroque Works?" Mr. 5 asked. He flicked something at Luffy and it exploded.

"Luffy-san!" I yelled.

"Especially when someone with a thirty million bounty winds up like that?" Ms. Valentine mocked.

"You wannabe pirates should never have stuck your noses into delicate issues," Mr. 5 said. "We've already captured your swordsman friend and the other girl."

"Nami-chan! Zoro-san!" I said.

"You caught Zoro?" Luffy asked. "Then you guys are gonna get cut down!"

"Oh? You still talk big even after one of my Nose Fancy's to the face?" he asked.

"You can't hurt me with that! I'm gonna kick you guys' asses!" Luffy said, spitting in his direction.

Mr. 5 passed Vivi over to Ms. Valentine and she held her by the arms as well. Mr. 5 walked over towards Luffy and kicked him in the face, while it exploded.

"LUFFY-SAN!" Vivi and I yelled.

He kicked him a second time, and a third. I stopped counting after ten kicks.

"Luffy-san…" I said, on the verge of tears.

Mr. 5 grabbed Vivi and held her by the arms. "Let's go, Ms. Valentine," he said.

They forced us to walk with them into the forest.

We came into a separate clearing where a man and a small girl were standing in front of the other giant, Broggy. But Broggy was lying on the ground, being held down by the candle man's wax.

Mr. 3 laughed and said, "Are you aware that the large bounties on your heads from long ago come to 200 million Berries in total?"

"So that's what you're after!" Vivi said.

Ms. Valentine tightened her grip on my arms, causing me to wince and said, "We brought them."

"The company's traitor and the stupid little girl that got involved," Mr. 5 said.

"What took so long?" Mr. 3 asked. "I was getting tired of waiting."

"How could you place bombs in Dorry's alcohol?!" Vivi asked, furiously. "You're a monster!"

Broggy's eyes widened in realization that it was all a farce. He'd only won because of Mr. 3.

"Wretched girl, giving our tricks away…" Mr. 3 said. "Well, there's nothing you can do now, anyway. Candle Lock!"

Mr. 5 jumped away from Vivi, wax locking her legs together and she fell to the ground. He did the same to me. I quickly put my dagger away.

Mr. 3 laughed in delight. "Mr. 5! Bring the swordsman and the girl!" he said. "We're about to begin." I couldn't see what was happening, but he yelled, "Extra Big Candle Set!"

Nami and Zoro were thrown to the ground, too.

"Set the candles up quickly!" Mr. 3 ordered Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine.

"Nami-san. Mr. Bushido!" Vivi said.

"Vivi! Maggie-chan? What happened?! Weren't you guys with Luffy?!" she asked.

"He's kinda stuck under a big rock," I said.

"I took care of him myself," Mr. 5 said. "He won't be coming out."

* * *

><p>We were taken up onto a huge cake-looking structure made of wax. They took off our restraints and placed our feet in the wax, so that we were stuck.<p>

Vivi was on the end, Zoro was next to her, I was next to Zoro, and Nami was next to me.

Since my hands were free, I took off my handcuffs because they were hurting my wrists. I put them back into my bag.

"Welcome, my friends, to my service set!" Mr. 3 said, bowing.

"So this is how it feels to be a candle stuck in a cake…" Zoro said.

"What's that thing spinning up there?" Nami asked.

Zoro tried to cut the wax with his swords, but it was too hard.

Something the color of snow started raining down.

Mr. 3 laughed and said, "May you enjoy my Candle Service! The wax haze falling from above you will eventually change you into wax figures! You'll be my perfect human models! Now die, in the name of art."

"Screw that!" Nami said. "Why do we have to turn into your works of art?!" She looked over to Broggy and said, "Broggy-san! Quit sitting there and go on a rampage! You're gonna get turned into a wax figure too, you know!"

I dug into my bag for my dagger, panicking. _I can't die here… I can't die here!_ I thought. _No way am I going to die here!_

I squatted down, rather awkwardly due to my legs being stuck, and started jabbing it into the wax cake.

_I'm going to get out of here! _I thought._ We'll all get out of here!_

"It's not going to work," Zoro said, looking at me. "If I can't cut it with my sword, you can't do it with that."

Broggy broke free from the wax, but Mr. 5 shot explosives at him, that knocked him back down. Mr. 3 encased him in more wax, ensuring he couldn't escape again.

"Can't move now, can you?" he teased the giant.

I kept stabbing the wax cake with my dagger, sure that I'd be able to chip my way out.

"Now then, accelerate Candle Set!" he said. "Turn these people into wax figures!"

The wax haze started raining down even harder. I coughed wax as I kept lancing the wax beneath us.

"Yes! Yes! Just try to look like you're in as much pain as possible!" Mr. 3 said.

_Sadistic jerk-face… _I thought.

"Scream, holler, and try to get out all you want!" he said. "It's not going to work!"

I could feel my back starting to stiffen. The wax haze was already hardening on me. I stood up, breaking some of it off and used my dagger to peel off the wax from my back.

"My hand won't move!" Nami said. "Can't we do something?!"

"I'm already turning stiff!" Vivi said. "What do we do?!"

"Zoro! Do something!" Nami pleaded.

He looked over to the giant and said, "Let's kick their asses together." He brought out two of his swords.

"You're gonna cut off your own legs?!" Nami asked. "Quit joking around!"

"It's not a joke," he said. "It's the only way out. What're you guys gonna do?"

"I'm going to scrape off the wax," I said. "I'm not going to die!"

"Oh?" said Mr. 3, regarding my statement. "You won't be able to keep up with my Candle Service!" He his hand towards me and grabbed the dagger out of my hand with wax and brought it back over to him. "Well, anyway, I'll take this from you, just in case."

A flash of pure rage pulsed through my body. "Give that back…" I said. "GIVE IT BACK!" I screamed. "Give it back! Give it back! Give it back! Give it back!"

"I'd prefer not to," he said, throwing it to the ground and kicking it away. "Oops."

I felt like I was about to burst into flames of rage. "GIVE THAT BACK TO ME!" I yelled, with tears swimming down my face.

"Why's it so important?" Nami asked. "It's just a dagger."

"My dad gave that to me!" I said. "I don't care if I hate him; he gave it to me and said to use it to protect myself! Give it back, right now!"

Mr. 3 ignored me.

I could feel my face starting to become stiff from the wax haze. I scratched it all off with my finger nails and started scratching off the wax from my arms as well.

Right as Zoro was about to cut off his legs, Luffy, Usopp and Karoo ran into the clearing.

"Let's do it, Usopp!" Luffy yelled.

"Yeah!" he said.

"Bird!" Luffy yelled. Karoo honked in agreement.

"Luffy! Usopp!" Nami said happily.

I was so happy to see them, I was speechless.

"Bust those guys up so much, they lose their original forms and send them flying somewhere far off!" Nami yelled.

"Yeah, I will!" Luffy agreed. "These guys spoiled the giant old guys' duel!"

I started scratching my arms and face again. Wax started getting stuck in my fingernails. I picked it out and continued scratching.

"Break the pillar first, Luffy!" Nami said. "We're about to turn into wax figures!"

"Oh, you're in trouble?" he asked.

"No, there was no problem at all," Zoro said.

"You're legs…" I said looking down. Blood was spilling off our layer of the cake.

"I was about halfway through," he said. "But it's not a problem."

"How is that no problem?!" Nami asked.

"Well, for now. Can you break this pillar for us, Luffy?" he asked. "I'll leave the rest to you."

"Alright, no problem!" he said.

I continued scratching off all the wax and picked it out of my fingernails to continue scraping.

Zoro stuck his sword in the air.

"What are you doing…?" Nami asked.

"If I'm going to be solidified, I prefer this pose," he said.

I laughed and continued scratching the wax off of my arms and face.

"Keep scratching like that and you'll start bleeding," Zoro said, looking at me.

"I don't care," I said. "I'm not going to die here."

"Well, if you guys are going to do a pose, might wanna start now," he said.

"Don't be silly," Nami said. "It's a stupid idea."

"Mr. Bushido! Please be more serious about this!" Vivi said.

"I'm always serious," he replied.

I completely focused on scratching all the wax off before is became hard. Parts of my arms were already getting stiff, but I was doing better than the rest of them.

That's when I had an idea.

"Tick Tock," I whispered, stopping time.

I scratched off more and more wax until it was almost all off of my arms and face.

"Un-Tock," I whispered.

Zoro was right. I did start bleeding. My arms were red and they were starting to bleed from all the skin I was scratching to get the wax off. It was starting to get very painful to keep scratching, especially on my face.

Before I noticed what was going on, the pillar holding the giant spinning thing above us broke and made it come closer to us, speeding up the wax haze solidification process exponentially.

I panicked. My skin was raw and bleeding, my fingers were aching, and now I wouldn't be able to keep up with the falling wax.

That's when I gave up trying to scratch it all off. Like Zoro, I decided to do a pose. I put on I put a cuff on each hand, leaving the other cuff open and put my hands on my waist.

I started watching the battle between Luffy and Mr. 3.

That's when I had another idea.

"Zoro-san?" I asked.

"Hm?"

"Remember when you threw that plate at me and I stopped it?" I asked.

"Yeah."

"Do you think it would work with the spinning thing?" I asked.

Nami gasped and said, "You could do that?!"

"I don't know…" I said. "But it's worth a try, right?"

"What? What are you going to do?" Vivi asked.

"I'm going to stop the spinning thing," I said. "Or at least try…"

From the silence, I figured she was confused.

I racked my brain to figure out how I stopped the plate. Was it some sort of special technique or was it just a weird miracle?

I looked up at the spinning candle-holder above us and bit my lip.

"That's much bigger than a plate…" I said.

"You can do it!" Nami said. "Go Maggie-chan! Go Maggie-chan!"

I took a deep breath and focused on the rhythm of the spinning wax above us. It was about a half a second per rotation.

"Tick Stop!" I said.

The giant spinning candle holder actually froze in time.

"I… I did it!" I said. "I actually did it!"

"Nice one!" Zoro praised.

"How… How did you?!" Vivi asked. "You have Devil Fruit powers?!"

"Yes, she does!" Nami said happily. "Now hurry up and break this thing Luffy!"

"No," he said.

I saw that Mr. 3 had been defeated and was lying on the ground.

"Quit joking around and hurry!" Nami said.

"I don't know how long I can hold this thing…" I said.

"No," he said again.

"This isn't the time to be acting stupid!" Zoro said. "You heard her! She won't be able to hold it for very long!"

"Luffy-san, please!" Vivi asked.

"What should I do? I don't feel like saving you guys…" he said.

"Luffy-san…?" I asked, breathing hard from the strain of freezing it. "What's wrong with you?"

"Colors Trap," said the little girl, named Ms. Golden Week. She was Mr. 3's partner.

"I can't hold it forever!" I said.

"I know… I know, but…" he said. "But I don't feel like saving you…"

"Why are you saying that?!" Nami asked. "We're gonna become wax figures if Maggie-chan doesn't keep holding that thing! Do you understand?!"

"Yeah, but for some reason I just can't get motivated," he said.

"This isn't a motivation problem!" Nami yelled.

Usopp ran into the forest with Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine chasing after him.

"Ms. Golden Week! This is your doing!" Vivi accused.

"Colors Trap: Betrayal Black," said the girl. That's when I noticed he was standing on a weird black symbol. "Touch the black paint, and you'll want to betray your friends, no matter what they say."

"Then whatever you do, Luffy-san, don't you dare step off that black paint!" I yelled.

"Yeah!" Vivi said. "Don't move a step! We don't want you to save us!"

"What the heck are you two doing?!" Nami asked.

My breathing became more like wheezing for air. "I can't hold it for much longer…" I said.

"No," Luffy said, stepping off the black paint.

"I get it," Zoro said. "You made him do the opposite of what you said."

"Luffy-san, hurry!" Vivi pleaded.

"I can't…" I said, taking in a huge breath and letting the spinning candle holder back into reality. I took a lot of huge breaths and felt very week. "I'm sorry… I can't hold it anymore…"

"Alright!" Luffy said. "I'll save you right now!" He wound up his fist, getting ready to punch it, but he started laughing uncontrollably. "Never mind you guys! I just wanna laugh!"

"Colors Tarp: Laughter Yellow," said Ms. Golden Week, holding a brush and pallet.

Luffy fell to the ground, laughing so hard. The yellow mark was on the back of his shirt.

"Luffy! Hurry and take off your shirt!" Nami suggested.

"Nah!" he said, still laughing. "I just feel like laughing!"

"This is bad…" Zoro said. "We probably won't last a minute with it raining down like this!"

"I'm… I'm sorry…" I said.

"You did your best," he said. "And it really did help. Don't apologize."

I smiled weakly and felt my body go stiff in the pose I wanted. I tried to move my arms, but they wouldn't budge. I really couldn't move!

The wax haze was already clouding my eye that wasn't covered with an eye patch. Pretty soon, I would lose all visibility.

Usopp came bursting in with Karroo, running away from his two pursuers. He accidentally ran into Luffy, which smudged the paint on his back.

He got up and yelled at Ms. Golden Week, "Hey! Knock it off, you jerk!"

"Was Laughter Yellow funny?" she asked.

"Shut up, stupid!" he said. "Anyways, I'm gonna break that pumpkin! Gum-Gum!"

Ms. Golden Week put a red mark on the ground and said, "Colors Trap: Bullfight Red!"

"Bazooka!" Luffy yelled, hitting the red mark.

"You're not allowed to break it," she said. "Mr. 3 would be mad."

"What is this?!" Luffy yelled.

"Just like bulls rush to attack red, you feel the urge to attack that Bullfight Red mark," she explained.

"This definitely not his kind of fight…" Nami said. "All his power is useless!"

"Colors Trap: Tranquil Green!" she said, painting a green mark on his back.

He sat down with her on a picnic blanket and drank tea calmly.

"What's gonna happen to us…?" I asked.

No one wanted to reply, for fear of knowing the answer.

My eyes and mouth were finally covered with wax. I was completely covered, now. I couldn't even breathe.

_Not good… Not good! Not good! _I thought._ Ok, remain calm. Just hold your breath until something happens. You're not going to die, Magnolia. Not here. Not now. Someone will save you. Someone's coming to save all of us._

My lungs were already begging for air. I just hoped that I would last until someone actually saved us.

* * *

><p>I could hear faint voices from somewhere dark. I gasped for air and it came. Where ever I was, it was very, very hot. It was almost like I was in the middle of a furnace. I couldn't see anything.<p>

"Flaming… Oni Giri!" I heard Zoro say from somewhere close by.

I could feel myself falling into something hot and liquid-y, but I didn't know what it was. My muscles ached and my arms and face still hurt from the scratching. It was getting too hot, almost too hot to bear.

"Where's Magnolia-san?!" I heard Vivi say.

"Don't tell me she's still in the fire…!" Nami said.

I tried to find my voice, but I wouldn't come.

That's when someone grabbed me and took me away from the horrible inferno.

"Got her," said Zoro.

"Maggie-chan!" I heard Nami said. "Are you alright?!"

I nodded my head and said, "Y-y-yes."

There was still something hot and sticking on my face. I wiped it off and I could see! It was wax that made me temporarily blind.

"Thank you, Zoro-san," I said.

"No problem," he said.

Broggy sat up and said, "Only two foes left."

"Luffy chased after them," Nami said. "He'll take care of it."

When Luffy did come back, Broggy was crying so hard, it was about to form a new river. He was extremely sad that his dear friend Dorry was dead by his hands.

But Dorry stood up.

"Dorry! How are you-?"

"It seems I blacked out…" Dorry said, using his sword for support.

Broggy hugged his friend so tightly that Dorry complained it was hurting his wounds. They both thanked their god that he was still alive.

They were in such high spirits, that they actually threatened to fight each other again.

I smiled at the two, happy that they were both ok.

They invited us all to celebrate with them.

Sanji eventually caught up with us. He told us that he talked to Mr. 0 via Transponder Snail.

"You talked to the boss?!" Vivi asked.

"Yeah. I found this weird hideout in the jungle," he said. "He seemed to think I was Mr. 3, so I told him I eliminated everyone."

"So he thinks we're dead?" Vivi asked.

"We're finally free of people chasing us, but we can't go anywhere!" Usopp said, partially happy.

_My dad's going to think I'm dead…_ I thought.

I didn't really know how I felt about that. On one hand, I was happy that he wouldn't try to look for me, but on the other I felt bad because he would think he's all alone and the last one left in our family.

Sanji brought out an Eternal Pose to Alabasta. Everyone cheered for him. Vivi even hugged him.

"Come on, Captain," Nami said. "We shouldn't be lounging around now that we know where to go."

"Alright, then," Luffy said. "Giant old guys, we're gonna go now!"

We all headed off towards the _Going Merry_. Usopp promised to visit Elbaf someday.

Zoro and Sanji started arguing about their hunting contest. Each was sure that their dinosaur was bigger than the others. I chuckled to myself as I climbed up to the crow's nest. I sat down and relaxed.

"Oh wait!" I said. I almost fell off the rope ladder while climbing down. "I forgot my dagger!"

I ran off the boat, only to be stopped by Luffy holding the back of my shirt. "Where're you going, Maggie?" he asked. "We're about to set sail!"

"I forgot my dagger in the clearing!" I said. "I need to go get it!"

"Alright," he said, letting me go.

I ran into the forest and into the clearing and picked up my dagger. I put it back in its sheath and into my bag. I took a deep breath and ran back to the ship. I went back up to the crow's nest and rested my head against the wooden railing.

_What a long day…_ I thought.

I yawned, closed my eyes and fell asleep.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	11. Sickness and Injury

Sanji's voice woke me up a couple minutes later.

"Magnolia-chan~" he called. "Magnolia-chan~" I rubbed my eyes and looked over the edge of the crow's nest. He was holding sweets. "I made a snack for you!"

I climbed down the rope ladder and thanked him. Vivi, Nami and I all sat around and ate the sweets.

Zoro was lifting weights and Luffy, Usopp and Karoo were in the kitchen, eating the stuff Sanji had made for them.

Vivi was holding the Eternal Pose and looking at it nostalgically.

"Vivi… Sorry, I think I'm gonna…" Nami said. "I'm gonna go lie down…"

"That's alright," Vivi said. "I'll keep an eye on our course. You should get some rest."

Nami struggled to get up.

"Are you ok, Nami-chan?" I asked. She didn't look very well.

She collapsed to the ground.

I dropped the pastry from my hand as I rushed over to her with Vivi. She felt Nami's forehead.

"Are you alright?" Vivi asked. "Everyone, come here! This is bad!"

"What's wrong, Vivi?" Luffy asked with a full mouth from the kitchen.

"Nami-san has a terrible fever!" she said.

Everyone crowded around her.

Luffy carried her into our room and set her on the bed.

"Is Nami-san gonna die? Is she, Vivi-chan?" Sanji asked, crying.

Vivi squished out the water from a towel and placed it on Nami's forehead. "It's most likely the climate," she said. "One of the problems all sailors who enter the Grand Line run into is illness caused by abnormal weather. There are countless stories of notoriously strong pirates dying from this."

I gasped and said, "Nami-chan…"

"Is there anyone on this ship with any medical knowledge at all?" Vivi asked.

Usopp and Luffy pointed to Vivi.

"But eating meat makes sickness go away! Right, Sanji?" Luffy said.

"I can make some basic food meant for sick people, but that's entirely different from any medical knowledge," he said. "And there's no guarantee it would work. Besides, I normally put 100 times more care into Nami-san, Vivi-chan and Magnolia-chan's meals than I do with yours… As long as I'm the cook, there'll be no problems whatsoever in terms of balanced diets."

Vivi took her temperature. "Fourty degrees C?!" she exclaimed. "Her fever's gone up again!"

"There'll be doctors when we get to Alabasta, right?" I asked.

"How much longer will it take, Vivi?" Usopp asked.

"I don't know, but one week is out of the question…" she said. "This may be a life-threatening illness."

"Nami's gonna die?!" Luffy asked.

Everyone started freaking out.

"Be quiet!" Vivi hushed.

"Let's find a doctor to help Nami!" Luffy said.

"Ok, ok! Just calm down!" Vivi said. "You're going to make her even worse!"

With that, everyone shut up.

"No," Nami said, sitting up.

"Nami-chan?" I asked.

She took the wet towel off her forehead and said, "In my desk drawer, there's a newspaper…"

Vivi went to go fetch it. She read over the various articles and gasped when she saw one of them. "No… This can't be!"

"What's wrong, Vivi-san?" I asked, looked at the newspaper from behind her.

"300,000 royal soldiers defected to the Resistance…" she said. "It was originally a cold war with 600,000 royal soldiers and 400,000 Resistance soldiers. But now it's changed!"

"The uprising is finally getting serious," Nami said. "The paper's from three days ago. We can't change our speed, so I didn't want to worry you by showing you that… Understand, Luffy?"

"Things seem very bad!" he said.

Yeah, he didn't really get it at all.

"But you still need to see a doctor," Usopp said.

"I'm fine," she said. "The thermometer must be broken, or something. It's sunstroke or something. We don't need a doctor. I'll get better in no time." She stood up and walked to the door. "Let's just head straight for Alabasta as planned."

"So she's better now?" Luffy asked as soon as she walked out.

"She's acting like it's no big deal…" I said.

Vivi was still looked worriedly at the newspaper. Zoro called out for all the guys.

I put my hand on Vivi's shoulder and said, "We'll get there in time. I just know it, Vivi-san."

She stood up with a calm look on her face and said, "I've made up my mind."

She stormed out of the room and up to the deck. I followed her.

"I have a favor to ask of all you," she said. Everyone gathered around. "I know it's not my place to ask you this as a passenger, but my homeland is in a terrible state. We need to get to Alabasta as fast as we can, without wasting a single moment."

"Of course, Vivi," Nami said. "That's what we promised."

"So we need to find an island with a doctor as soon as we can," she said.

Luffy smiled and said, "Yeah! Sounds like a plan!"

"Well said, Vivi-chan!" Sanji said. "I've fallen for you all over again!"

"You got guts," Zoro said.

Nami clung to the railing as she walked over to Vivi. "Sorry, Vivi… I think I am kinda… in trouble…" she said.

Vivi helped her stand up straight and said, "Come on, Magnolia-san. Let's get Nami-san to bed."

I nodded and took Nami's other arm.

"WHAT IS THAT?!" Luffy yelled.

I looked over to the direction he was pointing. There was a huge cyclone made out of water off the side. It started pouring down rain and lighting cracked overhead.

"That's the direction we were just sailing in!" Usopp said.

Vivi looked at Nami with awe. "I've never seen such a navigator before…" she said.

"Alright! Let's go find a doctor!" Luffy cheered.

"Yeah!" we all replied.

We sailed into safer waters as Vivi and I placed Nami on her bed. I put a new damp towel on her forehead.

"I think I can take it from here," Vivi said.

"Ok," I said.

When I got out onto the deck, it was snowing.

I sighed and went back to go get my coat. I climbed up into the crow's nest and bushed away the snow.

It didn't get much colder as the hours passed, but the snow was definitely becoming annoying to brush away. I kept looking all around for islands to stop by.

"See any doctors?" Luffy called up to me.

I laughed and said, "No, not yet." But I saw a figure in the ocean right after that. It was a weird looking man dressed like a court jester. "Wait, there's a guy over there… He's standing on the water!"

"People can stand on the ocean?" Luffy asked.

"C'mon, don't be silly," Usopp said.

"No, seriously!" I said. "There's a guy standing on top of the water!"

They walked over to the front of the ship to see the man.

"Huh?" Luffy asked.

Zoro joined in to see what the man was doing. They all rubbed their eyes to see if he was actually there.

"It sure is chilly today," said the man.

I stared at him, transfixed as to how he was standing on the ocean!

"Yeah, it is chilly today!" Luffy agreed.

"Chilly, chilly," Usopp said, a little confused. "Today's very chilly."

"Really?" the person asked.

All of a sudden the ship was rocked out of place by a bigger ship underneath us. I held onto the railing tightly, so I wouldn't fall off.

"What is that?!" Luffy asked. "A watermelon?"

I highly doubted that a watermelon could be that big.

"Is that a ship?" Zoro asked.

The metal sides lowered to reveal a pirate ship. It was almost galleon sized! I looked with my telescope to see if anyone was on board. There were many, many people on the ship. I gulped and took a step back.

"Did our jumbo underwater raid ship, the Tin Tyrant, surprise you?!" said a disembodied voice from somewhere on the ship.

All of a sudden, men came out of nowhere and surround us on deck, even surrounded me in the crow's nest!

I was paralyzed with fear. There were about six men crowding around and pointing guns at me.

"Are you really pirates? You're strange," said a rather fat man taking a bite out of a piece of meat. "Is it just you four and a half?"

_A half?! _I thought, very much offended.

"I find it strange that a group of pirates would only have four and a half people," he said, taking a bite out of a sword. When he finished eating it, he said, "Well, no matter. I'll start by asking this… We want to go to the Drum Kingdom. Do you happen to have an Eternal Pose or a log pose?"

"Nope," Sanji said. "Never even heard of the place."

"You're done, right? So leave!" Luffy said. "We're in a hurry. WE don't have time to mess with you!"

"Don't rush life like that," said the man. "But if you have neither, that's alright. For now, I'll take your treasure and this ship."

"What?!" Luffy said.

"But first, I'm feeling a bit hungry…" he said. He bent down and took a bit out of the ship's railing.

_He's eating the ship…?_

"What is this guy?!" Usopp said, befuddled.

"Don't eat our ship!" Luffy yelled.

One of the men pointed the gun at Luffy and said, "Hold it right there! Wapol-sama is currently eating!"

"Shut up!" Luffy replied, punching him.

"Fire!" said another guy.

They all started shooting Luffy, but the bullets all bounced off of his rubber body.

Zoro and Sanji got excited, they wanted to fight.

"No, wait! We can discuss this!" Usopp said, hiding behind the mast.

I looked at the men surrounding me. They looked a little hesitant to fire.

"What are you doing?!" the man named Wapol asked. "Shoot the girl!"

"But… she's a little girl…" said a man.

I smiled and said, "Tick Tock."

While time was stopped, I took the guns out of the men's hands and threw them overboard.

"Un-Tock," I said, starting time again.

"What?!" one of them asked.

"Where'd our guns go?!" another asked.

I punched and pushed them all out of the crow's nest. I dusted off my hands and said, "That wasn't so hard."

"Wapol-sama…" said a man on the lower deck. "These guys are…!"

"This ship doesn't taste half bad…" said Wapol.

Luffy punched his way over to the rotund pirate, Wapol. "Stop eating our ship!" he yelled.

Wapol actually chopped on Luffy's head, but being the rubber man he is, he was too chewy.

Luffy Gum-Gum Bazooka-ed him into next week.

All the men on board our ship fled to theirs. Apparently, Wapol couldn't swim due to his Munch-Munch Devil Fruit Powers.

"This isn't over! We will make you pay for this!" said the man that stood on water.

They sailed away, yelling threats at us.

* * *

><p>Usopp worked on the eaten railings the next day. It was rather annoying, all his hammering.<p>

It wasn't snowing, but it was just very cold. Vivi explained that the constant cold weather was proof an island was nearby.

"Magnolia-san, look out onto the horizon to see if there's an island nearby," Vivi said.

"Got it," I said, putting the telescope up to my eye. "I see it! There's an island!"

Luffy came sprinting up as I announced an island was nearby. As we got closer, everyone could see it.

As we sailed further inland, I made my way onto the deck with my bag. The island was covered in snow. I dreaded the thought of trudging through all the cold, wetness. I hated the cold.

"This is really something," Sanji said. "Look at those mountains."

"Hey, Luffy. Are you cold, dressed like that?" Usopp asked, shivering in all of his layers.

"It's minus ten degrees C right now! That's when bears get ready to hibernate!" Vivi said.

I shuddered at the thought.

He looked back at us and said, "Oh…" He paused and started shivering. "So cold!"

"Took you long enough!" Usopp and Sanji complained.

We came across a small waterfall and decided to stop there.

"Who's going doctor-hunting?" Zoro asked. "Well, people-hunting comes first."

Luffy raised his hand, having put on a coat and gloves. "I'm going!"

"Me too!" Sanji said.

"Ok, have fun!" Usopp said.

All of a sudden, we were surrounded by angry people. "That's far enough, pirates!" one of them said.

"I think I found people…" I said.

"They don't seem too friendly," Usopp said.

"Leave this place at one," said a man who stepped forward. "This instant!"

"We came to find a doctor," Luffy said.

"Our friend is sick!" I said.

"We won't fall for that trick, filthy pirate!" said a citizen.

"Using a child to trick us," said a man. "How dirty do pirates play these days?"

"This is our island! We won't let any pirates land here!" said another.

"Leave now, or we'll blow up the ship!" said another citizen.

"They really hate us…" Sanji said. "And we've only just met."

"Don't talk back!" said the last citizen to speak. He fired a shot at Sanji's feet.

I gasped in terror.

"They're shooting!" Usopp said.

Sanji got really mad, but Vivi held him back. I heard another gun shot and saw Vivi fall to the ground.

I shrieked and yelled, "VIVI-SAN!"

"WHY YOU-" Luffy yelled, incredibly furious.

I fell to my knees beside her and said, "Vivi-san? Vivi-san?!"

She sat up, seemingly unharmed and grabbed Luffy before he could go on a rampage. "Stop! Fighting won't help anything!" she said. "I'm fine! It only grazed my arm!" She got down on her knees and said, "We won't land here. But could we ask for a doctor?" She bowed.

"Vivi-san…" I said, shocked. I got down and bowed with her. I didn't want anyone else to get hurt.

"Our friend is suffering from a grave illness. Please help! I beg you!" she said. "You're not fit to be captain, Luffy. Not everything can be fixed by acting recklessly."

Luffy was silent for a while. "Yeah," he said calmly. "I'm sorry. I was wrong. Please call a doctor! Please help our friend." He got down on his knees and bowed, too.

I cringed, expecting gunfire. None came.

"I will show you to the village…" said a man who had spoken before. "Follow me."

We all sat up and exchanged looks of relief. The citizens followed the man into the village.

"See," Vivi said. "They understood!"

"Yeah!" Luffy said. "You're amazing!"

Vivi smiled. We all got off the boat and followed the villagers. Zoro stayed with Karoo to look after the boat. Sanji carried Nami on his back.

I hated every second of sticking my feet into the deep snow and pulling it out, only to put the other in the cold ick.

The man who agreed to show us to the village said, "The only doctor we have here is a witch."

I gasped, a little bit scared of what was going to happen.

"Witch?" Usopp asked.

"You gotta be kidding me…" Sanji said. "Noting here makes sense. What is this place, anyway?"

"This land still doesn't have a name," said the man.

"A nameless land? Does that really happen?" Vivi asked.

A bear came walking by. Usopp started freaking out, but I was too cold and miserable to care.

"A hiking bear. They're not dangerous," said the man. "Don't forget to bow. It's proper manners."

I bowed at the bear quickly, along with everyone else. The bear bowed back.

We finally arrived in the village named Big Horn. I found it weird how the towns could have a name while the island didn't.

The citizens left, trusting the man's word that we didn't pose a threat.

"Come to my home for now," said the man.

A woman came up to him and said, "Oh, Dalton-san. I heard there were pirates. Is everything alright?"

"Yes, it's ok," he said. "There's nothing to worry about."

The woman nodded and walked away, but a man approached us next.

"Dalton-kun! We're all looking forward to the election in two days!" said the old man. "Everyone says they're going to vote for you."

"You can't be serious…" Dalton said. "I'm nothing but a sinful man."

He seemed very kind and humble.

Dalton led us into his home and said, "Use the bed over there. I'll warm up the place." He set down his things and said, "I'm Dalton, captain of the security squad of this island. Please forgive our… heavy-handed welcome." He paused, turned to Vivi and said, "May I ask you a question?" She nodded. "I somehow feel like I've seen you before."

"I-it's probably your imagination…!" Vivi said. "Anyways, will you please tell us about this witch? Nami-san's temperature was forty-two degrees C when I checked it just now."

"Forty-two?!" he asked.

"It's gone up for three days now…" I said.

"She'll die if it goes up any more!" Dalton said.

"Yes," Vivi said. "But we don't even know the cause of her illness, or how to treat it…"

"We need a doctor! Anyone will do!" Sanji said. "Where is this witch of yours?!"

"See the mountains outside the window?" Dalton said. I looked over and saw the strange cylindrical-shaped mountains. "They're known as the Drum Rockies. There's a caste at the top of the tallest on in the middle. That's where she lives, Dr. Kureha, the witch."

"Of all places, why does it have to be so far away?!" Sanji asked. "Call her right away! We have a critical patient!"

"Even if we wanted to, there's no way to contact her," Dalton said.

"And she calls herself a doctor?!" Sanji muttered angrily. "What the hell is she like?"

"She's a very skilled doctor," Dalton admitted. "But she's an eccentric old hag. She's nearly 140 years old now."

"How's that even possible…?" I asked.

"And… she likes pickled plums," Dalton said.

"What happens when people here get sick or injured?" Vivi asked.

"She comes down from the mountain when she feels like it," he explained. "She looks for patients and treats them. As payment, she takes whatever she wants from their house before leaving."

"She almost sounds like a pirate," Luffy said.

"How does someone so old make it down that steep of a mountain?" I asked.

"Well, it's just a rumor, but some people claim to have seen her riding a sleigh pulled by a strange creature on moonlit nights," he said. "That's why she's called a witch." He sighed and said, "All we can do is wait for the next time she comes down the mountain."

"You can't be serious…" Vivi said.

Luffy shook Nami awake and said that the only way to see a doctor is to climb a mountain, and that they were going to climb it.

Everyone started arguing about how he was going to get up, how Nami was going to get there, and how it would be too hard on her.

"I need to get over this fast…" she struggled to say. "I need to hurry… for Vivi…" She smiled weakly and said, "I'm counting on you, Captain!"

Luffy smiled ear to ear and said, "That's more like it! Leave it to me!"

We were all worried about them going up alone.

"Alright," Sanji said. "I'm coming too."

They walked out the door.

"Listen, Luffy," Usopp said seriously. "Don't even fall once, or you can expect Nami to die!"

Vivi tied a belt around Luffy, securing Nami to his back.

"Ok, that should do it," she said. "I think I'm going to wait here. I'd only get in the way."

"Same here," Usopp said.

"Well, I want to go…" I said. "I mean, it would take less time, but I don't think I'd be helpful beyond that. I'll stay here."

"Got it!" Luffy said. "Ok, Nami! Hold on tight!"

"If you're going, I won't stop you, but at least climb up from the other side," Dalton said. "There are Lapins on this course. They're fierce, carnivorous rabbits. If you encounter a pack of them, you're as good as dead."

"Rabbits?" Luffy asked. "But we're in a hurry. We'll be fine."

"Yeah, I'll kick 'em!" Sanji said.

"Kick? You can't be serious! You'd be walking to your deaths!" Dalton said.

Luffy and Sanji started running for the mountains. We watched as they ran away.

"Will they really be alright?" Dalton asked.

"They're strong," I said. "They'll be fine."

"I'm more worried about Nami," Usopp said.

"Yeah…" Vivi agreed.

We watched them run off into the horizon. Dalton invited us in, but we three insisted on staying outside. He decided to join us.

I took a deep breath and thought; _I hope they'll be safe… I wonder what's going to happen._

My vision clouded for a second. I blinked a couple times, thinking snow was in my eye. But it was weird, the eye under my eye patch started to sting. I touched the eye patch, confused as to what was going on. This had never happened before.

"Magnolia?" Usopp asked me.

"Huh?" I asked.

"Are you alright?" Vivi asked.

"Yeah… Just this eye's hurting," I said, pointing to my eye patch.

"Has that ever happened?" Usopp asked.

I shook my head, "First- Ow!" A sharp flash of pain radiated throughout my eye socket.

"Did something get inside it?" Vivi asked. "Have you taken it off recently?"

"Only last night to go to sleep," I said.

"Here, let me see," Vivi suggested.

"Um…" I said. "It's kinda… Weird…"

"Weird how?" she asked, confused.

"There's a working clock on it," Usopp said. "It's pretty cool, actually."

"Clock?" Vivi asked.

"What's going on?" Dalton asked. "Something about a clock?"

"Her eye's bothering her," Usopp said. "Said it's never happened before."

I went to untie the eye patch, but as I got it off, there was another flare of immense pain. "Ow!" I exclaimed, squeezing it shut.

"Here, open your eye," Vivi said. "I'll see if there's something irritating it."

Usopp and Vivi crowded around. Dalton was standing behind them, craning his head to see.

I bit my lip and opened my eye. "Is it bad?" I asked.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	12. A Glimpse into the Future

"Is it bad?" I asked, opening my eye that barely ever saw light.

Vivi and Dalton looked a little creeped out, but Usopp's face turned pale.

"Uh… Magnolia?" he said. "It's supposed to be a working clock, right?"

"Yeah, why?" I asked. "Did it stop or something?"

"The hands… T-they're turning really fast," he said. "Like, really fast!"

"Ow!" I said, falling to my knees and clutching the area of my face of my aching eye.

Everything stopped. I didn't stop time, but it was like my eye stopped it for me.

I didn't know what was happening, but my eye stopped hurting. I stood up and looked around. I wasn't where I was earlier…

I was in a field of snow. There was a whole pack of the Lapins and they all looked really angry. I saw Luffy, Nami and Sanji in the field. Luffy was running away while Sanji was kicking huge rabbits to let Luffy have enough time to run away with Nami on his back.

_Time is moving again?_ I thought.

Everything went blurry for a couple seconds. When my vision became clear, I was in a different place. I was now standing in the middle of a village, but it looked different from Big Horn. There was an old woman with a blue-nosed creature accompanying her.

_What's going on?_

The woman walked into a building and I followed after her. She healed a little boy's legs. No one seemed to notice I was there.

_Is that… Dr. Kureha? She came down the mountain!_

Everything blurred again, and when it all cleared up, I was at the harbor near our ship. Wapol's ship was docked right next to ours. There were a bunch of dead bodies, as well.

Yet again, the scene changed before me. I was floating in midair and watching Luffy carry Sanji along with Nami up the steep mountain. All of a sudden his hand slipped and he fell down the mountain.

I shrieked and tried to grab his hand, but I was too late.

"No…! No, stop! I don't want to see this!" I yelled, covering my eyes.

Then, I was back in Big Horn. Usopp and Vivi were shaking me. I opened up my eyes and looked around.

"Magnolia-san!" Vivi said.

I stood up and looked around, confused. "I'm back…" I said.

_What the heck just happened…?!_

I tied the eye patch back over my eye.

The three of them were staring at me.

"What?" I asked.

"Your eye…" Usopp said. "It stopped for a while, then started again, then stopped and started again. Then it was back to normal."

"You wouldn't answer us…" Vivi said. "What happened to you?"

"I… I don't know…" I said. "But I think I'm fine now."

"Are you sure?" Dalton asked. "If you need to rest-"

"No, I'm fine," I said, looking around. "I think I'm going to take a walk."

"I'll go with you," Vivi said.

"I'll be fine by myself…" I said, standing up and walking away. "I'll be back in a little bit, I promise."

The wind started to pick up as I walked towards the forest. I shivered and clutched my arms to keep warm.

As I step foot in the forest, Vivi came running to me.

"Magnolia-san!" she called. "Dr. Kureha is in the next village over. We're going to go, want to come with us?"

"Yeah, sure," I said.

Dalton pulled up a couple minutes later in a reindeer drawn sleigh and we all piled in.

I sat next to Vivi and pondered over what I had seen.

_If what I saw actually happened, then Dr. Kureha really is in the next village… But why did I see that? And how can Luffy be in two places at once? Unless one of them happened later, I don't see how it's possible._

I gasped quietly and realized what happened.

_Did I… see the future…?! Well, I can control time at will… so I guess it would make sense I can see the future… But, how did I trigger it?_

I remembered I asked myself 'I wonder what's going to happen.'

So by wanting to know the future, I was shown it.

I smiled and started thinking of a name to call it.

_Tick-Tock Forward? No… Ooh! What about Tick-Tock Fate? Yes, I like that. Hehe! I have a new power!_

"Wait!" I said.

Vivi and Usopp looked at me.

I turned to Vivi and said, "If what I saw is true then Wapol's coming!"

"What are you talking about?" Usopp asked.

"Wapol?!" Dalton asked.

"He's coming here, he's coming to this island," I said. "And Dr. Kureha left the next village."

"How do you know that?" Vivi asked.

"My eye hurt because it was the first time I ever sped up time. I saw the future! I'm telling you Wapol's coming and it's useless to go there because she already left!"

They didn't believe me. Vivi even checked my forehead to see if I had a fever. I sighed and stayed quiet the rest of the way to the next village.

* * *

><p>"They've already left?!" Usopp asked a store owner. "And just a moment ago?"<p>

I walked over to the boy sitting on the couch. "She healed your legs, right?" I asked.

He nodded and smiled. "I'm going to be ok because of her!"

"If you're looking for Dr. Kureha, someone said she headed to Gyasta," said the store owner.

I crossed my arms and smirked. "I told you so," I murmured.

Someone burst into the room yelling for Dalton. The man was heavily injured and leaning on the door post to stand up.

"Aren't you supposed to stand watch today?" Dalton asked the man. The man collapsed and Dalton saved him before he could fall. "What's the matter? What's going on?"

"All the watchmen except me…" he said, "were killed."

"What?!" Dalton said.

Usopp looked at me.

"Suddenly, a submarine sailboat appeared…" said the man. "They killed everyone!"

"Who do you mean by 'they'?" Dalton asked.

"We're not strong enough…" said the man. "You have to help, Dalton-san! Wapol! Wapol came back!"

The whole store cracked into nervous whispers. Dalton ran out of the store and disappeared riding a horse out of the town.

Usopp and Vivi were staring at me with wide-eyed expressions.

"I told you…" I said. "But you didn't listen."

All of the able-bodied citizens decided to take up arms and follow Dalton back to Big Horn to defeat Wapol and his men.

"What are we going to do?" I asked Vivi and Usopp.

"We need to go to Gyasta," Vivi said. "It's our only option right now."

"Sounds like a plan," Usopp said.

We piled back into Dalton's sleigh and headed in the direction of the town called Gyasta.

"Are you sure this is the right way?" Usopp asked about five minutes into the sleigh ride.

We were all huddled around a map.

"Hm…" she said. "I'm not really sure…"

"That's not good…" I said.

"Do something, Vivi!" Usopp said. "You're a princess, right?"

"That has nothing to do with this," Vivi said. "I'm not a witch, I'm a princess."

"The map says there'll be a sign for Gyasta somewhere on the road…" I said. "We should keep a look out for that."

We all collectively agreed to keep a look out for the sign.

"Oi, Magnolia," Usopp said. "Did you see anything else when you saw the future or whatever?"

"Oh yeah," Vivi said. "Tell us more about what you saw!"

"Well, I saw Sanji-san, Luffy-san, and Nami-chan all heading towards the mountain, but they were fighting the Lapins."

"They're alright, right?" Usopp asked.

"I think so," I said. "Then, I saw Dr. Kureha heal that little boy's legs. After that was Wapol's ship and the dead bodies everywhere."

"Anything else?" Vivi asked.

"Yeah…" I said. "But… It's not good."

"Not good…?" Usopp asked, gulping. "How?"

"I think Luffy-san's gonna fall off the mountain…" I said.

Both of them went silent.

"That's definitely not gonna happen," Usopp said finally. "Luffy would never fall, especially carrying Nami when Sanji's around."

"Luffy-san was carrying Sanji-san, too," I said.

"Luffy-san…" Vivi said worriedly. "Please be careful…"

"Let's just hope what you saw wasn't right…" Usopp said. "Anyway, let's look for the sign to Gyasta!"

We all kept vigilant eyes out for the sign that pointed us to the town, but we just couldn't find it.

When the snow go so deep that the reindeer couldn't go any further, we hopped out of the sleigh.

The ground started rumbling from under us. I gulped and looked around, waiting to see some huge creature about to eat us.

"Wait…" Vivi said. "Could this be…?"

"A-a-avalanche…?" Usopp said.

My eyes widened as I look up towards the mountains and saw an avalanche coming straight for us.

"Magnolia-san!" Vivi said. "You can stop things with your Devil Fruit powers, right?!"

"That's a lot of snow!" I said. "I don't know if I can hold all of that!"

"Can you at least try?!" Usopp asked, nervously.

I looked at the oncoming avalanche and yelled, "Tick Stop!"

"It's not working!" Usopp yelled.

"I don't have a specific target! It's too much snow!" I yelled.

"What do we do now?!" Vivi asked.

Usopp was already untying the reindeer who sprinted away.

"RUN!" he yelled.

We all took off running, trying to out run an avalanche.

"W-w-w-we'll be fine!" Usopp tried to reassure us. "Even if we get swallowed, I'll save you guys for sure!"

"Do you think Luffy-san and the others were swallowed?" Vivi asked.

They both looked to me. I said, "I didn't see it, but somehow Sanji-san got hurt so Luffy-san had to carry them both up the mountain, so I guess not!"

All of a sudden, my feet were picked up from under me and I was swallowed by the avalanche, along with Vivi and Usopp. I didn't have enough time to stop time, it happened so fast.

* * *

><p>I woke up very wet, grumpy, and cold. Only my head was sticking up from the snow so I can to claw my way out while Vivi continually slapped Usopp so he would stay alive.<p>

The next thing we all decided to do was figure out where the heck we were because we had obviously missed the sign to Gyasta.

That's when Vivi stepped on a body emerging from the snow.

"AHHH! What's that?!" Usopp yelled with a very swollen face.

When I saw green hair, I knew that it was Zoro. He wasn't wearing a shirt for some reason.

"That was close…" he said, standing up. He shivered and looked in our direction. "Oh, Vivi, Magnolia…" He stared at Usopp, trying to figure out who he was. "Oh! It's you, Usopp! What're you guys doing here?"

"What are _you_ doing here?!" Vivi asked.

"I was winter swimming," he said. "Then after a while, I had no idea where I was anymore."

"Dressed like that, you could get frost bite," I said.

"You're stupid, aren't you?" Usopp said.

"Anyway, give me your coat, Usopp," Zoro said.

They bickered over Usopp's coat for a while. Usopp kept refusing even though it was obviously the nice thing to do for someone else who is probably ten times colder than he was at the time, but whatever I'm not judging him or anything.

Then Vivi noticed some people near us.

"Hey… I remember those buildings…" Usopp noted.

He was right. The tops of the buildings showed that we were in Big Horn. Most of the lower parts of the buildings were covered with snow because of the avalanche. I didn't realize how far we had just walked.

From what I could see, it looked like there were soldiers on one side and civilians on the other. They seemed to be arguing about something.

Zoro walked over to them and we followed him. It turns out that Dalton was buried under the avalanche!

"Dalton-san is?!" Vivi asked, worried.

"We can't dig him out because those guys are in our way," said one of the civilians.

"Step back!" yelled a soldier. "If you have any objection, go right ahead and bring it on!"

I scowled at the soldiers and mumbled, "Meanie…"

Zoro recognized the soldiers' clothes from their unsuccessful raid of our ship. "They're our enemy, right?" he asked.

"Yeah… But what are you-" Usopp said.

"You aren't so courageous without Dalton, are you?" mocked a laughing soldier.

I couldn't even see Zoro move, he was so fast. He punched the mocking soldier.

"Mr. Bushido!" Vivi said.

Everyone else was against the fact that he had totally taken out one of the soldiers.

Zoro laughed as he put on the soldier's coat. "This is warm! I'm so borrowing this!"

"You asked… because of that…?!" Usopp realized.

I laughed.

"You!" said a different soldier.

"Oh great… Now they're angry!" said Usopp.

"You were on the ship with that guy who blew Wapol-sama away!" said the same soldier from before.

Zoro looked back at them and smirked. "You never learn, do you?"

The soldiers charged but I really didn't think they had a chance, despite the fact that they outnumbered him about fifteen to one.

And I was right once he swiped three of their swords.

It was over within seconds.

"What a disappointing bunch…" he said, sticking the three swords into the snow.

"A-amazing…" Vivi said.

"All right! Good job, Zoro! Just as I instructed!" Usopp yelled, trying to act like it was his plan when it really wasn't.

The civilians ignored him and started digging frantically in the snow, looking for Dalton.

Zoro walked over to us and asked what they were doing.

"I'll explain later, let's help!" Usopp said.

I rubbed my hands together to get them at least warmer than they were before, before I started digging in the cold snow.

I was pretty sure I had frost bite by the time someone said they found him. We all ran over to the people that found him.

Dalton had three arrows through his chest, not all the way through, but they looked pretty deep.

"There's no heartbeat…" said the man that found him.

After much pleading on Vivi's part, a handle full of doctors came to treat him. They were called the Twenty MDs.

"I thought there weren't any doctors here…" Zoro said.

"They guys're the Twenty MDs and they exclusively work for Wapol," Usopp explained. "They're bad doctors!"

"Yeah! We can't trust you!" the citizens exclaimed.

The Twenty MDs said rather genuinely that they only did it because Wapol threatened them and the citizens caved in and let them take care of Dalton.

While the Twenty MDs worked on Dalton with many worried civilians standing around, Zoro, Usopp, Vivi and I decided that we should go up to the mountain.

"I'm worried what happened to Luffy-san and the others in that big avalanche!" Vivi said. "If anything happened to Nami-san in her condition…"

"You're worried about Nami," Usopp said, "and on top of that, you're worried about Dalton-san, as well as Alabasta, huh?"

"Someone can't be worried about that many things at once…" I said. "They'll explode."

"And plus, Nami is with Luffy and Sanji. I'm sure she's ok, even if Luffy supposedly fell," Usopp said.

"I can try to look, if you want…" I said.

"Really?!" Usopp and Vivi asked.

"I can try."

"Look for what?" Zoro asked.

"Magnolia can see the future, now," Usopp said.

"Woah!" Zoro said. "That's awesome!"

"I've only tried once…" I said, blushing. "I'll try to do it again."

Right as I was about to try and peek into the future, Dalton burst out of the house we were standing by.

"Dalton-san, you can't go!" said one of the doctors.

"Get out of my way!" he said, collapsing to his knees. "We can't let Wapol in the castle. Never!"

"You're heading to the castle?!" Vivi asked.

"In your condition? That's reckless!" Usopp said.

"When will I fight if I don't fight now?" he asked. "If Wapol seizes control of the throne again, this country will be rotten forever!"

The citizens pleaded with him to stay, but he was dead-set on going.

Usopp offered to carry him to the castle, but he only went about one meter, before Dalton became too heavy. Zoro ended up carrying him with Vivi, Usopp and me following along. Usopp was mad that he couldn't carry him.

"Wait!" said one of the citizens. "If you're willing to go that far… There's a ropeway to the castle."

"They were all cut! There's no more!" argued a different person.

"There is one. Someone reattached a white rope so it blends in," said the man. "It's tied to a big tree near the end of Gyasta."

"Gyasta?" Usopp asked.

"That's where Dr. Kureha was headed!" I said.

* * *

><p>It turns out we actually did miss the sign to Gyasta. A bunch of citizens joined us. Once we all got into the cart to go up the mountain from the ropeway, I sat down.<p>

"Ok, I'm going to try now," I said to Vivi. I took a deep breath and prayed I'd be able to do it again. "Tick-Tock… Fate!"

I could feel the clock in my eye turn wildly out of control and it worked!

I was standing inside an icy fortress, it was almost like a castle, but then I remembered that there was a castle on top of the mountain.

That's when I heard Luffy's voice. "Gum-Gum Bowgun!"

I looked over and saw a skinny version of Wapol being sent flying into the top of the castle.

The scene changed. I was standing all alone on the top of one of the castle's peaks, looking at a pirate flag. The pirate's Jolly Roger was cherry blossom petals floating around the typical skull and crossbones.

As the scene changed, I was confused why I saw the Jolly Roger.

_Maybe more pirates are on the island…?_ I thought.

The next was of everyone back on the ship. I even saw myself hanging out in the crow's nest, laughing along with everyone.

_Nami's ok!_

But I noticed a new face. I'd seen it before, but in a different form. It was the creature Dr. Kureha had as a pet.

_Maybe he's a doctor! _I thought._ How fun! We have a new member!_

When I came too, we almost reached the top of the mountain.

Vivi came over to me and asked, "What's going to happen?!"

"Nami's fine, Wapol's gone, and everything is alright," I said.

We landed at the top of the mountain and Vivi looked extremely relieved. I felt a bit worse for wear. I was extremely exhausted. It hadn't happened before and I don't know why it didn't, but the fatigue really hit me hard.

Zoro and Usopp had gone ahead, so I somewhat struggled to walk out of the lift with Vivi. When we stepped onto the snowy mountain, Usopp and Zoro were already stuck in the snow.

Luffy was laughing over them as they popped out of the snow. "I thought you were one of them, sorry!"

"We came up by the ropeway," Vivi said. "Luffy-san, are Nami-san and Sanji-san ok?"

"Yeah! They're fine now!" he said, smiling happily.

"I'm so glad!" Vivi said.

"I told you," I said.

"Yeah, but its nice hearing it from Luffy-san as well," Vivi said.

Dalton came up just as Luffy said he beat the crap out of Wapol.

"What about his two top men?" Dalton asked.

"The reindeer beat them up," Luffy said.

_Reindeer…? Oh! Oh! Maybe that's what that animal is! It did have horns, so I guess it makes sense!_

I looked around, looking for the reindeer and found him hiding behind a tree.

I smiled as I walked over to him. He hid even further behind it. He was wearing a hat and red pants. He looked like he was trying to dress like a human, yet he was a reindeer. He was so cute!

"Don't be scared," I said, smiling. I knelt down next to him and held out my hand. "I'm Magnolia, what's your name?"

He just stared at me with wide eyes and a scared expression. He poked my hand with one of his hooves and said, "Chopper…"

"I like your nose," I said. "It's my favorite color."

He smiled and waved a hoof like he was flattered. "Don't be silly!" he said. "You're stupid!"

I laughed and said, "I'm really serious."

All of a sudden, all of the people on the lift came bursting out.

"What is that thing?" they asked.

"It's a-a-a monst-"

Chopper hid behind the tree again and ran away.

"He's not a monster!" I yelled.

"Don't call him a monster!" Luffy yelled. "He's my new friend!" Luffy ran after him.

Dalton fell to his knees. We rushed over to see if he was ok. He said he was only a little drained.

"Hey," said an old woman, but she looked pretty fit. "Are you happy, brats? Take the injured guy to the medical ward."

"Ahh!" Zoro said. "You're that damn old hag!"

She kicked him in the face. "And anyone else injured, too."

"Y-yes, ma'am!" said the scared citizens.

"Don't dilly dally," she warned. "Do you want to end up the same as this man?!"

As the citizens scurried to get Dalton and the other injured people up into the castle, Usopp started building a snowman. Zoro was pouting by himself and Vivi said she was going to see Nami.

I sat down and started making snowballs and putting them side by side next to me. I made around thirty snowballs before I stopped. When I was done, the fatigue had completely worn off and I felt fine again.

I had an idea that would make even the cold fun.

I smirked mischievously as I stopped time by saying, "Tick-Tock."

I could see Zoro was looking at me right as I said it. His face was frozen in an expression of alarm.

He had every right to be! I was pretty sure he knew what I was about to do.

I scooped up a bunch of snowballs and walked over to Usopp, who was still working on his snow sculpture that I thought was going to be a snowman.

I set the snow balls down at my feet and picked them up one by one and threw them at him. Once they left my hand, they froze in time like everything else so it was extremely funny. I did the same to Zoro and ran behind a nearby tree.

"Un-Tock," I whispered.

I died laughing. Even though Zoro dodged most of his incoming snowballs, Usopp had no clue and got totally pelted by my sneak attack. My outrageously loud laughter gave away my position immediately, but I didn't even care.

"MAGNOLIA!" they both yelled.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	13. We're Here!

Before anyone could try and get revenge, Luffy came up and started yelling for the reindeer to come down and be pirates with us.

Usopp and Zoro stopped to tell him to give up and that he didn't want to be a pirate.

"That's not true!" Luffy said bluntly. "I wanna take him with us."

"That's not what _he_ wants!" Zoro pointed out.

Luffy didn't give up. "Reindeer!" he continued yelling. "Come out, reindeer!"

That's when Chopper actually showed himself.

"Let's be pirates together! Ok?" Luffy said.

"Not possible," he said.

"But it is 'cause it's fun!" Luffy tried to persuade.

"But…" he said. "But I'm a reindeer! I have antlers and hooves! I even have a blue nose!" He paused and said, "It's true… I wanna be a pirate, but… I'm not even human! I'm a monster! I can't become your friend! So… So I came to say thank you…" He looked to the ground and continued. "I do appreciate you guys. Thank you for asking me to join you. I'll stay here, but… one day, if you feel like it, stop by again-"

"SHUT UP!" Luffy yelled. "LET'S GO!"

Chopper's eyes watered and he cried. We all smiled at him, as if silently inviting him.

Zoro hit Luffy on the head and said, "You don't ask people to join you by telling them to 'shut up'…"

Chopper ran back into the castle to say goodbye to Dr. Kureha and gather up things he needed for the trip.

Nami and Vivi had dragged Sanji out while Chopper was making his long speech. Zoro and Usopp just brushed off the snow that I had pelted them with. Usopp continued to build his snowman.

Luffy said he wanted to say goodbye to the 'witch lady', but Nami said that they should give Chopper his time to say his goodbyes.

"And plus," Nami said. "We don't have time for goodbyes. Once we get to our ship, we immediately set our course to Alabasta."

"I'll get the ropeway ready," Usopp volunteered. "Oi, Luffy! Gimme a hand."

"I didn't know there was a ropeway," he said, following Usopp.

After a couple minutes, I could hear some yelling in the castle, but I didn't really think anything of it. It was partly a doctor's office, after all.

"Hey, he's coming…" Zoro said.

"What…?" I asked. I looked into the gate and saw Chopper pulling a sled and being chased by someone.

"The ropeway is ready!" Usopp called.

"Everyone! Get on the sleigh! We'll go down the mountain!" he yelled.

That's when I noticed it was Dr. Kureha that was chasing him. She actually threw a mace at him, along with other various sharp/dangerous objects.

A simultaneous, "What?!" was heard from everyone in the group.

We all jumped in the sleigh to avoid the raging witch. He hopped on the ropeways and ran on the line with us balancing in the sleigh. From up there, it was a very long way down.

When we landed I felt relieved, but Luffy wanted to go again.

"Stupid!" Nami scolded. "We're setting sail right away."

Sanji woke up and was extremely confused as to where he was. That's when we started hearing cannon noises.

Chopper stopped the sleigh and turned into his little self again. We all looked off into the horizon.

It was beautiful. The snow was bright pink. It looked like cherry blossom petals were falling instead of snow. The center mountain had a cloud of pink above it as well, making it look even more like cherry blossoms.

Chopper wept, it was so stunning.

It looked even prettier from the crow's nest of the ship. When we set sail, Luffy was making a funny face and everyone was laughing except Chopper and me (I couldn't exactly see the face from on deck.) I think he was just a bit overwhelmed with all the strong personalities on deck. Vivi was warming up Karoo who had jumped in the frozen river.

"Let's toast to our new friend!" Usopp yelled.

"Yeah!" we all agreed. "Cheers!"

Even though I didn't have a drink, I raised an imaginary glass towards the deck.

We all filled Chopper in on the situation in Alabasta.

* * *

><p>The next day, Sanji interrogated Luffy. Apparently the food he had prepared for the journey had 'mysteriously' disappeared overnight. Luffy was obviously the one to blame. When Luffy fessed up, Sanji kicked him into the wall. He also kicked Karoo, Usopp, and Chopper.<p>

Sanji condemned the two boys to fish until they caught something while he went through the storage to see if anything was left.

We went through a small section of fog and they accidentally caught a man.

"Why did I jump on the duck that I suddenly came across?!" the man asked himself.

He let go of Karoo, whom Luffy and Usopp were using as bait, and fell into the ocean.

"Help me! I can't swim-" he said, splashing wildly before he went under.

I rushed down the rope ladder to see what was happening.

Luffy and Usopp pulled him back on deck, soaking wet. We all gathered around him suspiciously.

"I thought I was going to die…" he said, panting. "To think I was saved by pirates who are total strangers… I will never forget your kindness for the rest of my life!" He bowed to us, and then he pointed a finger into the air and said, "Also, may I have a cup of warm soup?"

"We don't have any!" Luffy and Usopp yelled.

"We're the ones who're hungry!" Zoro yelled.

The strange looking man gazed at Vivi and said, "Ooh! You're a cutie. You're my type! I wanna eat you up! Smooch~" He made a kissy face at her.

Vivi grimaced and looked away. The man was certainly ugly. He was dressed like a swan ballerina with makeup and pointe shoes. His hairy legs were exposed by his strange attire.

"So you can't swim, huh?" Luffy said.

"Yes, I ate a devil fruit," the man said.

"Really? What kind of fruit?" Usopp asked.

The man stood up and said, "Well, since there's no need to rush until my ship comes to pick me up… In the spirit of entertainment, I'll show you." He smiled creepily and thrusted his hand at Luffy's face. "This is my power!" he yelled.

Zoro thought he was a threat, so he pulled out two swords and said, "You bastard!"

Luffy's face appeared on the man and he said in Luffy's voice, "Wait! Wait! Wait! I just told you this is entertainment! Gimme a break!"

"Woah!" Luffy said. "That's me!"

"Surprised?" the man asked, laughing. "If I touch my face with my left hand," he did so, "See? I'm back to myself!" His face turned back to his ugly self. "This is the power of the Clone-Clone Fruit."

I laughed, thinking his power was a bit… lame, but he thought I was laughing because it was funny.

"I don't have to knock you down either!" he said. "All I have to do is…" He touched his face and he turned into Usopp, Zoro, me, Chopper, and then Nami. "touch my face and I mimic anyone I remember, even their bodies!" Nami punched him before he could get any ideas.

Luffy, Usopp and Chopper cheered him on to do more, which he not so humbly indulged.

Zoro, Nami and I went off to the side, unamused by all the fuss.

When he finally left, his shipmates called him Mr. 2.

"Mr.… 2?!" Vivi said. "So he is Bon Clay…!"

"How did you not know his face, Vivi?" Luffy asked.

"I never met Mr. 2 as well as Mr. 1 and his partner," she admitted. "I don't know their powers, either… though I did hear rumors…" We all gathered around her. "He's a ballerina with a large frame, who talks like a woman, and a swan coat that says 'Bon Clay' on the back."

"You should've noticed…" said Usopp and Luffy.

"What's the matter, Vivi-san?" I asked. She looked really worried.

"One of the faces he showed from his memory… I saw my father's face!" she said.

"If you could mimic a king…" Zoro said. "You'd be able to do quite bad things…"

"How could we let someone like that get away?" Usopp said.

"He's certainly gonna be a problem if he's on our enemy's side…" Nami said. "If he realizes we're his enemy, he could transform into one of us using his memory from earlier!"

"We won't be able to trust each other…" I said.

"I think we should consider ourselves lucky we got to see him now," Zoro said, grinning slyly. "We can make counter-measures."

* * *

><p>We entered Alabasta's climate within a couple grueling days with no food. I was fine, but Luffy was really suffering.<p>

Up in the crow's nest, I saw many Baroque Works ships. When I told everyone down below, Vivi said that the employees had started gathering.

"They're probably Billions," Vivi said. "The Officer Agent's subordinates."

"That means our enemy is at least 200," Nami said.

Usopp started readying the cannon. "Let's get on with the firing!" he said frantically.

"It'll be quicker if we go there directly to beat them up!" Luffy said, hyped up. His stomach growled and he changed his mind. "We should eat first."

"Don't even bother," Zoro said. "They're small fries."

"He's right," Sanji agreed. "If we lose our real target, that'll be it. There're only nine of us."

We each got marks on our left arms of an X that were covered by bandages that symbolized that we were actually us. My sleeve covered the bandages so I didn't look out of the ordinary, like Chopper and Zoro did.

We all started preparing for Alabasta and the many fights ahead.

When I could see the island, everyone got really excited.

"Let's stop at the town called Nanohana. We have to hide the ship," Vivi said.

"Alright!" Luffy said. "No matter what happens, this thing on our left arms is the sign of our friendship!"

We all gathered in a circle and put our left arms in.

"Let's land!" Luffy determined. "To a restaurant- oh, and Alabasta!"

Nami gave a pep-talk to Luffy about how he wasn't supposed to just rush into things and that the people we would be fighting are trained assassins. He said he understood.

* * *

><p>We docked the ship on a remote harbor that Vivi said no one visited. From the ship, we could see the city called Nanohana.<p>

Nami once again reminded everyone that self-control would be key and acting on instinct could get us killed.

"Yes, Nami-san!" Sanji agreed happily.

"The guy who needs to hear that the most is already gone…" Zoro said.

"Hm?" I asked. I looked around and saw that Luffy had already taken off towards the city. "Luffy-san!"

"GET BACK HERE!" Nami yelled angrily to no avail. He just kept barreling towards the city at top speed.

"He's all instinct…" Usopp decreed.

"What should we do?" Vivi asked.

"Don't worry," Sanji said while jumping off the boat. "Find where the most commotion is, and he'll be there."

"Got that right," Usopp said.

Nami sighed. "I wish he'd at least realize he has a bounty on his head!"

"Forget about him. Let him do whatever," Zoro said, climbing down the rope ladder. "Let's just eat first. We can think after that."

Chopper jumped off the ship and Nami looked annoyed. "They're all the same…" she said.

"Karoo and I can't go with you," Vivi said.

"Why not?" I asked.

"I'm too recognizable here," she said.

"Don't worry," Sanji said. "I'll go shopping for you too, Vivi-chan!"

All of a sudden Karoo started freaking out.

"What's wrong?" Vivi asked.

Karoo pointed across the harbor to a ship that had giant words on the side. 'Mr. 3' it read.

"Mr. 3's ship?!" Vivi said.

"That creep didn't kick the bucket after all?!" Usopp asked.

"His ship runs on his wax powers, so there's no mistake," she said.

"I have an idea!" Usopp said.

We all climbed down to the ground and waited for Usopp. He came back with a huge blanket and we walked into the city crouching under it. Since Mr. 3 had never seen Sanji or Chopper, they were the only ones who weren't under the cover.

I thought the idea was a bit weird, but at least it worked. Usopp checked that the close was clear and we stayed behind a pile of ruins.

"Looks like nobody noticed us!" Usopp cheered.

"Oi, Vivi," Zoro said. "You said you had a plan to stop the rebel army, right?" She nodded. "What are you going to do now? What are we going to do?"

She looked confused. "The arrangement was only to bring me to Alaba-"

Nami knocked her forehead and said, "Come on! Are you still saying that? We've traveled this far together. We can't just leave you now!"

"Yeah!" I said. "You're our friend."

"Don't try and do everything on your own," Usopp said.

"Plus, I'm interested in this Warlord of the Sea," admitted Zoro.

"Don't mention that!" Nami whispered hoarsely to him.

"Not to mention people are out to kill all of us, but me and Chopper," Sanji said. "So there you have it."

"And besides, if this country gets destroyed, we won't get our reward for bringing you here," Nami said deviously.

"Y-yeah…" Vivi said.

"Very, good, then!" Nami said happily.

"Go to hell…" Zoro said.

That reminded Nami of Zoro's debt to her. She said even if she was a ghost, she'd still haunt him for money.

When everyone calmed down, Vivi began to explain her plan. "Northwest of this city is an oasis called Yuba. That's where the rebel army is based. I'd like to go there first to stop the uprising. But we have to cross the desert to get to Yuba," she said. "We've got to stock up on food and water here if we have any chance in crossing. But since Mr. 3 is in town…"

"It's not going to be a problem," Sanji said. "He hasn't seen my face."

"That's right! You haven't met anyone so far, Sanji-san!" I said. "And Chopper-san too!"

"That'll be perfect," he said, looking to Chopper. "We'll have a lot to carry, so I'm counting on you."

Chopper nodded and said, "Got it!" He changed into his reindeer form.

"In that case, thank you both," Vivi said. She handed them a piece of paper. "This is everything we'll need. Oh, we'll need some clothes or else we'll stand out."

"And perfume!" Nami said.

"No problem!" Sanji said.

Everyone else said what they wanted. Usopp really wanted tabasco for some reason. They exited the ruins to go shopping.

"I wonder where Luffy-san could be…" I said when they'd left.

We waited in the ruins for about an hour before Sanji and Chopper came back. He handed everyone clothes and we took turns going behind the ruins to change.

I was the last to change. When I walked back in, Nami was twirling and Vivi was blushing and saying that she was wearing dancer clothes when she asked for commoner clothes. The guys were eating like wild animals. Chopper was on the ground covering his nose.

"Magnolia-chan!" Sanji said. "You look adorable in those clothes!"

I grimaced and shook my head. I preferred my other outfit over that attire. Vivi was right, he had gotten dancer clothes and I really didn't like it. A top that showed my stomach and a long, flowing skirt was definitely not my forte.

Vivi started talking about how crossing the desert was going to be much more difficult than we probably were thinking. We all agreed to continue helping her until everything in Alabasta was settled.

"Let's go to Yuba right now!" Usopp said, fired up.

Everyone cheered in agreement.

"Wait…" I said. "What about Luffy-san?"

"LUFFY!" they said, noticing he was still missing.

"That idiot…" said Nami.

* * *

><p>Everyone except Vivi and Sanji went into town to look for Luffy now that we wouldn't stand out as much as before. Nami was constantly pulling Usopp and Chopper away from scammers in the market place trying to sell painted gold apples, claiming they were precious artifacts.<p>

That's when Zoro noticed a man with Luffy's wanted poster asking around if anyone had seen him.

"Maybe he's a bounty hunter…" Nami said.

"No," Zoro said. "He's not." The man walked away, revealing a large tattoo on his back. "That mark…" Zoro said to us. "As a former pirate-hunter, there's no way I wouldn't recognize it." He looked back at the man, but saw someone else instead. "Here…?! It's her! What's _she_ doing here?!" He proceeded to hide behind a large pot.

Nami and I looked at each other in confusion. "What're you doing?" she asked.

He poked his head from behind the pot. I gazed in the direction he was looking.

"Ca-Captain Sm-Smoker!" I said, seeing him.

Everyone else hid behind the pot too.

"The navy captain from Loguetown!" Nami whispered.

"He followed us all the way here?!" Usopp whispered back.

"It would seem so," said Zoro. "Then there's that man… This could get ugly quick."

"Where is that idiot?!" Nami asked angrily.

We decided to go back to the ruins to fill the rest of the crew in on what we saw.

"Nami-san! Magnolia-chan! You've come back!" Sanji said.

"The navy is here," Nami said, ignoring him.

"Navy?!" Vivi asked.

"And a strange man!" added Chopper.

"Let's find Luffy soon and leave town," said Nami.

Zoro started pushing us into the ruins, saying "Hide. Hurry."

"What is it?" Usopp asked.

"The navy!"

I could hear angry screams of people coming towards us. They were all yelling about not letting someone escape.

"Some idiot pirate must be running around town or something," Sanji determined.

"Idiot pirate?" everyone asked.

All of a sudden, one of the navy men said, "Get back here, Straw Hat!"

"LUFFY!"

"Oh, so that's where you guys are!" Luffy said, seeing us.

"Get rid of them first!" Zoro yelled.

"Whaddo we do now?!" Usopp asked.

"Run to the ship!" Nami said.

We all grabbed the supplies and started running after Luffy with the navy on our tails.

Cpt. Smoker was about to attack, when out of nowhere, someone yelled, "Heat Haze!" A giant column of fire hit the smoke and both attacks dispersed. "You may be smoke, but I'm fire," said the strange man looking for Luffy earlier. "A fight between us would never end."

"He has Devil Fruit powers?" I asked.

"Who is he? Why is he helping us?!" Usopp asked.

"Ace!" Luffy said.

"You haven't changed a bit, Luffy!" said the man named Ace.

"You ate a Devil Fruit?!" Luffy asked.

"Yep! The Flare-Flare Fruit," he said. "We can't chat like this. I'll catch up. You guys run!"

"Let's go!" Luffy yelled.

As we ran away, Luffy revealed that the man named Ace was his older brother.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	14. Into the Desert

**Author's Note:**

**I'm so sorry I haven't updated in forever! I started high school about a month ago and took a small hiatus to get into the grove of things. Anyway, here's the long-awaited next chapter.**

"Is that guy really your brother, Luffy?" Nami asked.

Luffy replied, "Yeah! His name's Ace."

"What's he doing in the Grand Line?" Zoro asked.

"He's a pirate! He left the island three years before me to find the One Piece!" Luffy explained.

"Well, anyway, let's hurry back to the ship," Nami suggested.

We kept running away from the Marines stalled by Luffy's brother. Soon the path forked and we took a left. When we got back to the ship, we loaded up all the supplies and got ready to set sail. I ran up the rope ladder as fast as I could just in case the Marines got past Luffy's brother.

I took a deep breath and saw that they weren't coming.

That's when we realized Luffy was missing.

"That moron!" Zoro complained.

"Should we wait?" I asked.

"Nah, let's just set sail," Nami said.

"Is it really ok to set sail without him?" Chopper said when we started moving.

"The navy will be all around, so we should just hide the ship before we get spotted," she said. "Maggie, keep a close eye out for the navy and Luffy, alright?"

"Got it!" I said. I fished the telescope out of my bag and looked all around for any sign of either our captain or the navy. So far, I hadn't seen anyone.

We sailed for a couple more minutes until I finally saw him. "Everyone! Luffy-san's at the harbor waving at us!"

He stretched his arm and got a grip on the ship. He flung over and knocked Sanji and Chopper down in the process.

"I'm back!" he said.

Vivi helped up the fallen crewmates.

"Sorry 'bout that!" Luffy said nonchalantly. "Oh wait. What about Ace?"

"Was it ok to leave him there?" Usopp asked.

I looked through my telescope at the harbor and saw Ace. He was jumping through the air and coming to land on our ship.

He kicked Luffy in the face as he landed on _Merry_'s railing.

"Oh! Ace! This is the crew I was talking about!" he said.

"Thank you all for taking care of my little brother," Ace said politely.

"You guys probably have a lot of catching up to do. I'll make some tea," Sanji said.

"No, that's ok. Don't do it just because I'm here," he said.

Everyone was shocked at the vast difference between brothers. Luffy was a bit reckless and Ace was sensible and polite.

"Umm… Everyone!" I said, looking into the sea. "Baroque Works ships!"

Vivi gasped and said, "Billions!"

"Those guys again?" Luffy asked.

"I got this one, Luffy," Ace said.

He hopped off the ship and got onto a small yellow boat powered by his fire. When he got close enough, he jumped onto the first of the Billions ship. He punched his fist into the air and a gigantic column of fire sunk all of the ships. He jumped back onto his small boat and came back on the _Merry_.

"Woah!" Usopp said.

"That was so cool!" I said.

Everyone was happy to have Ace on board, especially Luffy. It turns out that Ace was going to Yuba as well as us, so he agreed to ride along with us. Ace was looking for a man called Blackbeard; he killed a crew member and ditched the Whitebeard's so now Ace was going after him.

Vivi said she wanted to stop the ship for a moment.

"I have an important task for Karoo," she said.

We pulled the ship over and anchored it into place. Karoo, Vivi, Usopp and Luffy got off for a moment.

"Karoo, I want you to go to Alburna Palace and deliver this letter to my father. I wrote down everything Igaram and I learned about Crocodile and Baroque Works, also that I've returned to Alabasta alive with some friends," said Vivi.

Karoo saluted his friend and quacked. Vivi tied to letter to him and told him to drink his water sparingly.

"Good luck, Karoo!" Luffy said.

Karoo quacked goodbye and took off running into the desert.

* * *

><p>We reached Erumalu, our last stop before crossing the dessert. Vivi handed me an orange cloak-like outfit and said it was to keep the sun off of my skin. I put it on over the dancer outfit. Nami had a white one on and Vivi had a navy one.<p>

"Vivi-chan! Nami-san! Magnolia-chan!" Sanji yelled. "What happened to the dancer outfits?!"

"Exposed skin will wind up terribly sunburned!" Vivi explained.

Sanji started sulking in the corner. Vivi gave a red cloak to Luffy as well.

"Let's get ready to go," said Zoro.

As Zoro was about to drop the anchor, weird seal/turtle-like animals popped out of the sea.

"Kung Fu Dugongs!" Vivi said, recognizing them.

"'If you want to come on shore, you'll have to beat me first'," Chopper translated.

Usopp underestimated them and jumped off the ship. He was beaten up in seconds.

Luffy jumped off as well and beat up the leader, who bowed to Luffy.

"It's the Kung Fu Dugong's rule that if someone loses, they all become the winner's pupil," Vivi said.

Soon all of the Dugongs were surrounding Luffy with looks of admiration. Luffy had some fun playing with the Dugongs, but then Nami yelled at him and said we had to head out.

I climbed down the rope ladder and onto the deck. One by one, we stepped off the rope ladder and onto the ground. Nami and Vivi put their hoods up, so I did the same.

Luffy really wanted to take the Kung Fu Dugongs with us, but Vivi and Nami totally rejected him.

Chopper gave them a small piece of meat and told them to stay.

After a momentary goodbye, we all started walking into the hot desert. I was much happier that we were crossing a desert instead of a blizzard. I absolutely hate the cold, but I was used to the heat. As long as we had enough water and food, everything would be perfect.

We walked up a tall sand mountain and only saw ruins.

"Is this Yuba?" Luffy asked.

"No…" Vivi said, seemingly shocked. "This is Erumalu. It used to be called the City of Green."

"It doesn't really look green anymore…" I said.

"This is exactly what Baroque Works is doing to our country," Vivi said.

We walked through the ghost town. It was pretty eerie. The wind whistled through the holes in the buildings and sand blew in the wind, making it seem like someone was tapping on your shoulder.

Vivi explained that the citizens of Alabasta were under the impression that the king was using a type of green powder called Dance Power to make it rain in the capital city, Alburna.

"Wait, but wouldn't something like that be perfect for this country?" Usopp asked.

"There's a big catch, though," Nami said. "The neighboring country had a drought."

"So it steals the moisture from other countries to make rain?" I asked.

"Basically," Nami said. "Eventually war broke out between the country that developed it and the neighboring one. Ever since, the World Government put a ban on Dance Powder."

The citizens of Alabasta continued to believe that the royal family was using Dance Powder to only keep moisture in the capital.

"Of course, my father had nothing to do with it, but at the same time a massive amount of it was found inside the palace…" Vivi said.

We came upon a dry sandy road and asked Vivi where it would take us if we followed it.

"It was a canal that used to bring water in from the Sandora River," she said. "With the canal dried up, the City of Green couldn't get water and eventually was abandoned."

We parted ways from the canal and went forth, leaving the once called City of Green behind.

* * *

><p>About thirty minutes into our journey, Luffy was already very tired and hot. He'd found a walking stick and was clinging to it for support.<p>

"Quit moaning so much," Nami said, annoyed. "You'll make yourself even more tired."

He groaned and Nami rolled her eyes.

I looked back and saw Zoro dragging Chopper on a sled made out of sticks. Usopp looked worn out as well. The rest walked as if nothing bothered us.

"Seriously… What's with all these hills?" Usopp asked. "I thought the desert would be more flat."

"This desert is pretty old," Vivi said. "Some of the sand dunes are almost 300 meters high."

"That's like climbing a mountain!" Usopp said.

Luffy continued groaning, so Nami said he could have one drink of water. Only one.

Instead, he took about thirteen. Everyone started yelling and hitting people.

"Stop fighting!" Vivi said. "You'll waste your strength!"

"She started it!" Luffy said, pointing to Nami.

"It's your fault!" Nami yelled.

"Yeah! This is your fault!" Sanji said.

I sighed and whispered, "Tick-Tock" which stopped time.

I dragged everyone away from each other and started time again with, "Un-Tock."

* * *

><p>We camped inside a rocky place when the sun went down. The boys set up a couple tents and Sanji started cooking food over the fire Ace had made.<p>

Ace distanced himself from our wild crew, sitting on a log outside a tent without saying much.

It was also starting to get very, very cold. Vivi, Nami and I huddled together.

As night turned into day, I woke up with Vivi screaming at everyone to get behind the rocks.

I shot up off the ground as quick as I could and walked outside. There was a sandstorm coming. We all hid behind the rocks as it passed over us.

"I forgot to mention it, but sandstorms are one of the desert's dangers!" Vivi said when it was over.

The tents were completely destroyed.

Despite the loss of the tents, we kept moving. Not even two hours later, while it was still morning, Luffy said he wanted lunch.

"Not until Vivi says so," Sanji said.

"Come on Vivi!" Luffy implored. "I'm hungry!"

"We're not even one tenth of the way to Yuba!" she said.

"But what about that proverb, If you're hungry, eat!" he said.

"That's not a proverb…" Usopp said.

"Ok, we'll take a break at the next rocks we find," Vivi said.

That got Luffy excited. He rushed ahead and started telling everyone to hurry to the next rocks.

"Whoever wins rock-paper-scissors has to carry everyone's stuff!" Luffy said.

"Hey-"

"Rock! Paper! Scissors!"

I quickly shot up rock, as did everyone else. Luffy was the only one to pick paper.

"Woohoo! I won!" he said.

We gave him all of our things to carry. I don't think Luffy actually meant to say the winner has to carry everyone's things… He started complaining even more. I asked Usopp to look on ahead with his goggles to try and find some rocks.

"I found them!" he said, not long after. "Rocks spotted up ahead!"

"For reals?!" Luffy said from way behind everyone else. He ran ahead, yelling, "Food!"

He came back a couple seconds later screaming that there was bad news.

"He's coming back?" I asked, confused.

"There are birds that can't move! Chopper!" he yelled.

Chopper stood up, looking serious and grabbed his bad from off his sled. He started running towards Luffy.

"Alright, let's go, Chopper!" he said. They took off running back towards the rocks.

Vivi looked worried. "Wait, Luffy-san! Don't tell me these birds are-"

Vivi started running after him. Curious, we all took off towards the rocks.

We found a devastating sight. The birds had taken all of our supplies.

"We've been had…" Nami said somberly.

"But it's the truth! There were dying birds over there!" Luffy said.

"I should have mentioned it earlier…" Vivi said. "Warusagi birds are desert bandits that trick travelers and steal their belongings."

"That's awful…" I said.

"Birds playing dead? That's dirty!" Usopp said, disgusted.

"They tricked me!" Luffy said, angry now.

Sanji got mad at Luffy for letting our stuff get taken away. "How are we supposed to cross the desert without our three days' worth of provisions?! Is your brain smaller than a bird's?!"

They started arguing, but Ace said it was no use to stop them. "Time's like this, it's best to let them have it out."

"Anyway, let's take a short break. This heat is what has them fuming," Zoro said, sitting on the rocks. "I'm sure we'll manage somehow."

I took off my hood as well as Vivi and Nami.

Luffy suddenly stopped brawling with Sanji. Apparently he saw the birds that tricked him and sprinted after them, yelling insults at them.

Vivi tried to stop him, but it didn't help.

"He'll come back eventually," Ace said.

After a couple minutes, we began to think he'd gotten lost.

"Jeez… He has a horrible sense of direction and just has to go running off," Nami said.

"And there are so many desert dangers he doesn't know about…" Vivi added.

"He's such a lost cause…" Zoro said, standing up.

"You can say that again," Sanji agreed.

They both started walking towards the direction he ran off to.

"Sorry," Ace said. "For my little brother's ineptness, I apologize for the trouble."

"Good luck finding him," Usopp said.

The ground started rumbling.

"What's happening…?" I asked.

Usopp pulled down his goggles and said, "Another sandstorm? Oh wait! Luffy?!"

"No… It couldn't be!" Vivi said.

Luffy came into sight riding a camel. It looked like they were running away from whatever was causing the rumbling.

"What's chasing him?" Sanji shouted over the clamor of the desert.

No one could see clearly what in the world could be chasing him. All of a sudden, out of the clouds of sand pursuing after Luffy and the camel, a giant beast emerged trying to eat them both.

"What is that?!" Zoro asked.

"A Sandora Dragon!" Vivi said, recognizing the beast.

It looked almost like a frog, but it was purple and had very large and pointy teeth. The dragon roared and hopped out of the sand on all four legs.

"He really does have a knack for attracting trouble," Ace said, grinning.

Sanji and Zoro ran towards the danger to lend three helping swords and a foot. The three monsters of our crew attacked all at once, killing the dragon in an instant. Everyone's mouths dropped to the floor in awe, even the camel.

"I almost pity the monster…" Nami said.

That's when the ground started shaking and another Sandora Dragon emerged from the ground right under our feet.

"I forgot to mention, but Sandora Dragons hunt in pairs!" Vivi yelled.

Ace stood up, looking at the monster with an amused frown.

"Look out!" Nami shouted to him.

"You wanna play?" Ace said to the beast. It roared back. "If that's what you want…" He gripped his hat and grinned.

Ace jumped into the air and the beast closed its mouth, trapping him. About a second later, fire escaped out its nose and the beast erupted into a column of red hot flames.

"Woah…" I said.

Ace remained when the fire subsided, unhurt.

* * *

><p>After we regrouped and Zoro sliced up both of the Sandora Dragons, Sanji put the slices of meat onto a rock.<p>

Chopper recognized the camel and said that he had helped him escape from Katorea.

"That's great!" Usopp said. "We can ride it!"

The camel did have a saddle, after all.

"Looks like it could carry two people," Sanji said.

"I wanna go first!" Luffy said as he tried to climb up, but the camel bit his head. "What was that for?" he asked.

Chopper translated as the camel tried talking to us. Apparently, no men were allowed to ride him.

Nami petted the camel after Usopp, Luffy and Sanji gave it a hard time. I walked over to the camel too and stroked its head.

"I'm sorry about them," Nami said. "Our crewmates are so ill-bred. You're a good boy. What should we call you?"

"Stupid!" Luffy suggested.

"Moron!" Sanji suggested.

"Doofus!" Usopp suggested.

"That's not nice…" I said. I stroked his forehead and said, "We should call you Lashes!"

"That's the weirdest one of all…" Zoro said.

"Well, _I_ like Lashes, so Lashes it is," Nami said, smiling at me.

I grinned triumphantly at Zoro. He rolled his eyes and walked away.

Nami got on top of the saddle and Lashes sat down so I could get on. I climbed up and saw that there was still room.

"Vivi-san!" I said. "Get on!"

"No, I can still walk," she said.

"Come on," Nami said.

The boys chanted that Lashes was a pervy camel.

I scooted back as Vivi hopped on. We all put on our hoods.

"We should make better time with Lashes," Nami said. "We'll get to Yuba even faster!"

"Giddyup, Lashes!" Nami said, cracking the reigns.

Lashes started cantering into the desert.

"Wait!" the rest of them called.

"If you don't hurry up, you'll get lost and never make it out of the desert alive!" Nami called back.

It was a little uncomfortable, but it was much better than walking. Lashes kept running for a while, until Nami said to stop. I'd lost sight of our crew.

"Do you think they'll be alright…?" Vivi asked.

"What if they already got lost?" I asked.

"They can follow the footprints," Nami said.

"I'm going to go look for them…" I said.

Nami told Lashes to sit down for a second so I could get off. I squeezed out of the seat (it was a little tight with three people) and hopped to the ground.

"Will you be alright?" Vivi asked, worried about me.

"She'll be fine," Nami said.

I nodded. "I have a canteen in my bag in case I get thirsty."

"Be safe…" Vivi said.

"I will," I said, heading the other way.

I followed our footprints until I started thinking of other things. By the time I realized I had completely lost sight of the footprints, it was already too late.

"Huh…?" I said, looking down. My eyes widened and I realized my situation. "I'm lost! Oh my gosh… I'm going to die out here all alone and probably of starvation and dehydration and I'm never going to see anyone ever again!" I dropped to my knees and took a deep breath. "It'll be ok, Magnolia. Get yourself together!"

I slapped my face and took out my telescope from my bag. I stood up and elongated the telescope, bringing it to my good eye. I turned 360 degrees and saw a person. I looked closer and saw that it was Ace. He looked alone.

_Maybe he's lost too…_ I thought.

I shrunk the telescope and put it back into my bag, heading in the direction of Ace. Thankfully, he stayed in one place so it didn't take long for me to see him. I waved my arms, hoping he'd notice me. He cocked his head to the side and realized who I was. We started walking towards each other.

"Are you lost, too?" he asked. I nodded my head. "Looks like we're in the same boat, huh." He looked to the side abruptly and said, "Did you just hear something?"

I shook my head and said no. That's when the ground from under my feet started raising up and I looked down to see the exoskeleton of a large bug. I screamed and stopped time, jumping off the bug just in time.

Ace just looked at the giant bug like it was nothing. That's when its tail came into view. It wasn't just any bug. It was a giant scorpion.

"I wouldn't if I were you," Ace said menacingly to the scorpion, eyeing its stinger.

But the scorpion didn't listen to his warnings, which eventually lead to its incineration.

Ace walked away from the scorpion, dusting his hands off like it was no big deal. I hurried after him.

"That was so cool!" I said.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	15. The Lost Trio

"It was nothing, really," he insisted.

All of a sudden, a new animal blocked our path. It was a lizard about as tall, if not taller than Ace, who was standing up right.

I took a step back, in case it was dangerous. Ace stepped to the side and the lizard mirrored him, stepping to the side as well. Ace stepped to the left and it followed. They just stared at each other for the longest time. Ace shrugged and walked around it. I followed him, though still uneasy about the lizard. The lizard followed after us.

"Why is it following us…?" I whispered.

"Maybe it's lost, too," he said.

It made sense, I guess. "Do you know what direction Luffy-san and the others went?" I asked.

He shook his head. "Not in the slightest, but we'll meet up with them eventually, I'm sure of it."

His words made me feel a little better, but not much.

We kept walking and the lizard kept following us. The lizard never made a sound; he just followed a few paces behind us. I began to ignore it because Ace didn't seem alarmed.

After we'd been walking for at least an hour in silence, I asked to take a break. Ace didn't look bothered by the heat; he did eat the Flare-Flare Fruit and all… But he said we could rest for a couple minutes.

I found a rock nearby and touched it to see if it was scorching hot, which it wasn't. I sat down and took a sip of water. It was hot and tasted like sand, but it was refreshing. I wiped the sweat from my brow and took a deep breath.

"So," Ace said, starting up a conversation. "How did you get lost? You were on the camel, I thought."

"Yes, I was riding Lashes, but we lost sight of the group, so I offered to go looking for everyone. I guess I didn't pay attention or something and wandered from the foot prints," I said.

"Ah," he said. "I was just walking and all of a sudden, I didn't see anyone around."

_Maybe he has a horrible sense of direction? Or maybe he's just very easily distracted… _I thought.

"Well, are you ready?" he asked.

I looked at the silent lizard and it stuck out its tongue like a snake, licked its eyeball, and reeled it.

_Eww… _I thought.

"I guess," I said, putting the canteen of water back into my bag. I stood up and waited for Ace to lead the way.

He started walking again, but then he stopped and turned to me. I almost bumped into him, but stopped abruptly as he did.

"What is it?" I asked.

"I almost forgot to ask…" he said. "What's your name again?"

"Magnolia," I said, a little hurt that he forgot my name, but I let it go because everyone makes mistakes.

"Nice to meet you, Magnolia," he said politely and started walking again.

"You too, Ace-san," I said. I looked back at the lizard and said, "I think we should name it. I mean, it's followed us all the way here. I don't think it plans on going anywhere."

"That's a good idea. You should pick the name," he said.

I thought for a while as we kept walking. "If it's a guy, Justin seems like a good name," I said. "But if it's a girl, we can call her Christy."

Ace looked back at the lizard and said, "Sounds like a plan, Magnolia." He paused for a second and said, "But what do we call it in the mean time?"

"Justin," I said.

"Gotcha."

* * *

><p>We'd been walking for hours and I had totally run out of water. Ace looked like he was thirsty too. We'd barely made any conversation because I guess we both didn't know what to say to each other.<p>

From his perspective, I'm pretty sure he thought it was a little awkward to be lost in the middle of a desert with a twelve-year-old girl and a lizard named Justin/Christy.

From my perspective, I was lost with the twenty-something year old brother of my captain and a weird lizard that kept following us. I wasn't sure what adults talked about with younger kids and I really knew nothing about him.

The thought made me realize that I really didn't know anything about most of my crew mates. But I dismissed the thought for a later time.

"Ace-san… You're part of the Whitebeard Pirates, right?" I asked.

"Yep."

"So what are you doing here in Alabasta?" I asked.

"Well, I heard Luffy was around so I thought I'd come see my little brother," he said. "But I'm tracking down a former crewmate of mine called Blackbeard. He killed one of our crewmembers and then ran off. On our ship, that's the ultimate crime. He won't go unpunished."

"That's awful…" I said. "But why did he kill the man?"

"Devil Fruit," he said. "Blackbeard wanted the Devil Fruit the other man had found so he killed him."

I rolled my eyes in disgust. "Devil Fruits really are from the devil… They make men do outrageous things like kill people for the thought of power. I honestly cannot stand them, even if they give you great powers. The world would probably be better off without them."

"I can see where you're coming from, but that doesn't mean the world should just get rid of them all," he said.

"I think it does…"

"Sounds like you've had a bad experience," he said, laughing.

"Yeah," I said. "I did." He asked if I was willing to share. "I guess…" I replied. "Well, my dad's a naval officer and he found a Devil Fruit and brought it home to my mom and I. We were torn whether he should eat it or sell it. I was five at the time so I didn't really get it. But the night he came home, my mom told me to eat it because she didn't want my dad too. So I did. And when my dad found out, he was really mad. He stole me away in the middle of the night and brought me on his ship. I spent eight years there. He basically used me to work his way up the ranks…"

"Wow," he said. "That's quite a story for someone of your age."

I said, "Don't get me wrong, I really like my powers, but sometimes I think my life would've been better without them. But then I wouldn't have met Luffy-san and everyone else. And I don't think I've ever been happier!"

"May I ask what the Devil Fruit you ate was called?" he asked.

"The Tick-Tock Fruit," I said.

Ace whirled around and his mouth dropped to the ground. "WOAH!" he exclaimed. "You got _really_ lucky! That's probably one of the most powerful Devil Fruits in history!"

"I'm still pretty limited though…" I said, blushing. "I mean, I can only stop time for about ten minutes before I exhaust myself…"

"It's still pretty awesome, though!" he said.

I nodded.

* * *

><p>After our talk about Devil Fruits ended, Ace said we should probably search for water. About fifteen minutes later, we found a small pond with clean water teaming from the ground. Justin drank for a long time. We filled up our canteens and drank straight from the pond.<p>

The water was cool and refreshing, but it still tasted like sand to me. We took a short break by the pond to cool off.

It was probably well into the afternoon when I could see a couple clouds of dust off into the distance. I wasn't very concerned until a couple minutes later they doubled in size and started heading straight for all three of us.

"Ace-san…" I said, pointed to the dust clouds.

"Oh crap…" I heard him whisper. "It's probably another sandstorm. Come on, hurry! We need to find a rock or something to cover us."

He started sprinting in the direction of a rocky area up ahead. I looked back to make sure Justin was following us, which he was. I also looked at the encroaching sandstorm. It was only about a mile away from us. I wondered if we'd make it in time and started running even faster.

By the time we made it to the cover of a couple tall rocks, the winds were strong enough to pick up a small animal. I crouched down next to Ace and held my hood so it would stay on.

"It's here," he yelled over the winds.

Even with the cover of a big rock, I was still thrown about twenty feet away and covered with sand. I guess I was just really light. When the storm was over, Ace rushed over and asked if I was ok. After I finished spitting out sand from my mouth, replied with a yes. Justin seemed ok too.

Ace helped me stand up and said, "It'll be dark in about an hour or so. We should probably look for a more suitable place to rest for the night. This place doesn't seem protected."

"I'll look for a better place," I said, fishing into my bag and pulling out my telescope. I elongated it and set it to my good eye. I looked around and saw a larger rocky area nearby. I passed the telescope to Ace and pointed in the direction of the rocks. "How's that?"

He set the telescope to his right eye and squinted the left. "Where again?" he asked. I pointed again in the direction. "Oh," he said, seeing it. "Yeah, that looks perfect. Good find!"

He handed the telescope back to me and I put it back in my bag. Ace lead the way to the rocky area with Justin and I following.

When we finally reached it, Justin took off running for the rocks.

"Oi, Justin!" I called, running after him.

I saw him run around a sharp corner and hurried after him. When I found him, he was laying down in a small cave. He looked exhausted.

"Hey, this is perfect!" I said, admiring his choice of camp. I walked out of the cave and say Ace casually jogging over to us. "Ace-san," I said. "I think Justin found a perfect place to camp!"

When he reached us, he too agreed that it was the perfect spot. Since the dark was coming even faster than Ace planned, he said he would go look for fire wood. He found a small leaf of the ground, set it inside the cave and lit it on fire.

"You stay here and don't burn yourself," he said. "I'll only be gone for a couple minutes."

"Sir, yes, sir," I saluted.

He set his things down and exited the cave.

I sat down next to Justin and sighed. It was nice to sit down. I took off my bag and hood and set them beside me. I pulled my knees to my chest and rested my head on them.

Despite the leaf being small, the fire was pretty big, warm, and bright. It was mesmerizing to see it flick back and forth. When I looked over to Justin, he had already fallen asleep. I patted his leg softly and said goodnight.

A couple minutes later, Ace came back in with a bunch of firewood. I have no idea where he managed to find it. "Got the firewood," he said.

"Thank you, Ace-san," I said. It was almost completely dark outside and that meant it was going to get really cold soon.

"No problem," he said.

Ace arranged the firewood accordingly and made his finger turn into flames, put it at the base of the wood and it caught fire.

"That's really handy," I said.

He smirked and said, "Yeah, I guess so. Still think the world should be rid of Devil Fruits?"

I shrugged and said, "Maybe, maybe not."

A wintry gust of wind blew into the cave and sent chills up my spine. I scooted closer to the fire to stay warm.

"Cold?" he asked. I nodded and said a little.

We sat in silence for a couple minutes, just staring at the fire.

"Say, Magnolia?" Ace said, breaking the silence. I looked up at his face. "How'd you meet my little brother anyway? I thought you said you were with the navy."

"I was," I said. "But I escaped one day while we were docked on an island. I ran to the opposite side of the island and found them there. I snuck on the _Merry_ and they found me a couple days later hiding in a barrel."

"A stowaway, huh?" he said.

I nodded. "I only planned to stay until they docked at the next island, but I guess sneezing isn't a good way to stay quiet."

He laughed. "What happened when they found you?"

"Well, Zoro-san sliced the barrel in half, which really scared me. I didn't really know what to do. I just started stopping time and running, stopping time and running. Then all of a sudden, Luffy-san's arm stretched and caught me. They asked a couple question and viola, I was the official watchman of the Straw Hat Pirates. Never seen my dad since."

"Watchman?" he asked, confused. "But you only have one eye!"

"No," I said. "I have two; just I wear this to keep people from staring at the clock on it."

"A clock?" he asked. "On your eye?"

I nodded and said, "Yep."

"Do you miss them?" he asked. "I mean your family. Do you miss them?"

"Well, yeah, a little. My mom is dead so I think about her a lot, but not so much my dad," he said.

"Understandable," he said.

"So, Ace-san," I said. "What about you and Luffy-san? What were you like as kids?"

He smiled and said, "Gosh, I'd have to think back…" he thought for a while. "Luffy's the same as ever, I suppose –except he doesn't cry anymore."

"Cry?"

"Yeah, he used to cry over almost everything!" he said.

I laughed and said, "That's hard to imagine!"

"Yeah, but I really didn't like him when I first met him," he continued. "My friend Sabo and I tied him to a tree once and planned to kill him."

I gasped. "That's awful…"

"Yeah, we were mean to him," he said. "But we came around eventually."

"I would think so," I said. "It would be so cool to have a brother or a sister."

"They can be a pain sometimes, but you gotta love 'em at the end of the day," he said, smiling.

I looked to Justin and said, "I wonder if he has a family. Maybe they're looking for him." I sighed and looked outside. It was completely dark. There was another gust of wind that made my hairs stand on end. I yawned for the first time, signaling my sleepiness and said, "I think I'm going to sleep. Goodnight, Ace-san."

"'night, Magnolia," he said.

I woke up very early the next morning; neither Ace nor Justin was awake yet. I stood up and saw that the fire had gone out. Ace was snoring particularly loudly and Justin still hadn't made a sound.

I grabbed my bag and slung it over my shoulder, letting it rest on my hip. I fished out my canteen of water and shook it. It felt about half full. That was good. I took a couple small sips and put it back into my bag.

I walked outside of the caves and sat down in the cool morning air. I heard a couple loud snorts from Ace and then it sounded like a cow smacking grass.

"I'm hungry…" he said.

I stood up and walked back into the cave. "Good morning," I said.

"I'm _hungry_," he said, standing up. "Oi, Justin get up, we're going."

And with that, Justin sprang up from the floor and started walking out of the cave.

Ace and Justin walked out of the cave and I followed them.

* * *

><p>We eventually found Luffy and the others the next day. After a short run in with some cowardly rebel pirates, we all were back on our way to Yuba.<p>

Nami, Vivi and I all took turns riding Lashes again. When it was the middle of the day, even I couldn't stand the heat much longer, it was just so hot!

There were a couple more fights over water, too.

Nami was curious about the rebel army, so Vivi told us about the leader, Koza, who used to be one of her best friends.

Later that day, Luffy started hallucinating again. Nami sent Zoro off to go calm him down. Sanji, Usopp, Nami, Vivi, and I all started walking along without them. They would just follow our footprints, Nami said.

_Because that worked so well last time…_ I thought.

* * *

><p>It was almost night when they still hadn't gotten back.<p>

Usopp was falling behind again, even with his handy walking stick. I got off of Lashes and went to go help him.

"Usopp-san," I said. "Take as much time as you want."

"We have to get moving, though…" Vivi said.

"I know," I said, smiling. I touched his arm and said, "Tick-Tock." I stopped time.

He collapsed to the ground and said, "Thank you so much, Magnolia!"

He rested for about five minutes before he said he was alright again.

"Un-Tock."

"I feel better!" he said, in high spirits.

"That was so smart of you, Magnolia-chan!" Sanji praised.

I smiled and said, "It's nothing really!"

I struggled to get on top of Lashes and rested, a little tired from stopping time.

"You guys are amazing," Vivi said. "If thought that ever since Little Garden. You all have so much faith in each other. How do you know Luffy-san and the others are coming back? They could be hopelessly lost right now!"

"I guess it's because we all do what we can the best we can, it's not really something we're conscious of…" Nami said. "It's like something Luffy said back on my home island. He doesn't know how to use swords, he can't sail the ocean, he can't cook, he can't lie, and he can't control time. He said that he can't live without help. And I remember his words very well."

"I see what he's saying," I said. "Alone, there's only so much you can do, but together you can accomplish anything! But the teamwork doesn't go well if all your friends don't do what they can."

"Thank you," she said. "Really, that helped a lot."

A couple minutes later, Vivi started pointing to the horizon. We all looked over, wondering what was the matter. Zoro, Luffy, and Chopper were all there! They actually found us!

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	16. Abundance of Fights

Ace departed shortly after. He gave Luffy a plain piece of paper and said that it would help Luffy find him one day. Nami sewed the piece of paper into his straw hat so he wouldn't lose it.

After about five more hours of walking through the dessert, we could see Yuba in the distance. The wind started to pick up eerily. Vivi noticed that the city was getting hit by a sandstorm. We stayed far away from the city until the storm had passed.

It was a devastating site. Everything was covered in sand and even the trees were withered and dying. It was like the city had been abandoned long ago.

"Oh no…" Vivi said, shocked.

"This place isn't any better than Erumalu," said Zoro.

"Isn't this an oasis?" Sanji asked. "Where's all the water, Vivi-chan?"

"The ground is raised from the sand… The oasis was probably covered up," she said.

We heard the sound of shoveling nearby. There was an old man at the bottom of a big hole shoveling away sand.

"You're passing travelers, right?" the old man asked. "You must be tried from your trip across the dessert. This town's a bit dried up at the moment, but I hope you can get some rest before you go."

Vivi covered part of her face when the man looked up at us. She also averted her eyes from him as she asked where the Rebel Army was.

"Those fools left a long time ago," said the man bitterly.

I bit my lip in pity for Vivi who looked extremely upset.

"That… That can't be!" she said.

"You saw the sandstorm, right?' the old man asked. "Well, it isn't the first. The drought caused the oasis to dry up and sandstorms have plagued us ever since. Without a prospering city to support it, the Revel Army packed up and moved to Katorea."

"Where's that, Vivi?" Luffy asked. "Is it nearby?"

"It's the oasis right next to Nanohana…" she said.

"That's the town where I got lost and met Lashes!" Chopper said. "Lashes said he was delivering supplies to the Rebel Army."

Sanji, Usopp and Luffy got really mad at Lashes.

"We came here for nothing, then…" I said, disheartened.

The man walked out of the hole with a happy look on his face. "Vivi… You just called her Vivi!" She took a step back. "Is that you, Vivi-chan? You're alive! It's me! Do you still recognize me?"

She gasped and said, "Toto-oji-san?!"

"Yes!" he said. "That's me!" He put his hands on her shoulders. "Listen to me, Vivi-chan. I believe in the king! He's not one to betray his own country!" Toto fell to the ground in tears. "The rebellion is stupid. So what if it hasn't rained in three years? I believe in the king! I tried to stop them, but it didn't make any difference. They want to end it all in their next attack. Vivi-chan! Please stop those fools before they die for nothing!"

Vivi knelt down next to him and said, "Don't worry. I'll stop the rebellion."

"Thank you, Vivi-chan!" he said, crying still.

* * *

><p>The old man showed us to building that used to be an inn. The guys all slept on one side of the room while we slept on the other side. Zoro accidently started a pillow fight by throwing one at Usopp for 'being lazy the whole day'. Which cause Usopp to throw one at Zoro, and then Zoro missed and hit Chopper and things got out of hand after that. When Nami finished hitting everyone involved, we all fell asleep rather quickly.<p>

In the morning, we parted ways with Toto and he gave Luffy some water he managed to dig out.

* * *

><p>While we started walking back into the dessert, Luffy randomly stopped and sat under a tree, frowning.<p>

"Luffy, come on," Usopp said. "We need to go."

"Luffy-san?" Vivi asked.

"I quit," he said.

"What do you mean…?" she asked.

"We don't have time for this, Luffy…" Usopp said.

Sanji tried to get him to stand up, but Luffy pushed him out of the way. "Vivi. I want to beat the crap out of Crocodile. If we stop the rebels, will Crocodile stop? Even if we reach Katorea, there nothing we can do. We're pirates. You're better off going without us."

_What is he saying?! Vivi is our friend! We have to help her! _I thought.

"Luffy-" Vivi tried to say.

"All you want is for no one to die in this battle," Luffy said. "Not your people, not any of us. You're taking on a Warlord with almost a million people about to fight. You don't want anyone to get hurt. Are you just fooling yourself?"

Vivi looked really mad.

"You don't understand what it feels like to be in Vivi-chan's place," Nami said to him.

Sanji held out his arm and said, "Wait, Nami-san."

We looked to him in confusion.

That's when Vivi let it go. "What's wrong with that?!" she asked angrily. "What's wrong with not wanting anyone to die?"

"People die," he said.

She slapped him so hard, he flew about ten feet. "Don't you dare talk like that!" she yelled. "That's what we're trying to stop! Not the Rebel Army, not the Royal Army… No one in this country is at fault, so why does anyone have to die?! It's all Crocodile's fault!"

Luffy stood up and punched Vivi in the face. "Then why are you risking your life?!" he asked. Vivi tackled him to the ground. "Looking at this country, what really needs to be done is…" She started punching him repeatedly. "even clear to me! You think risking your life is enough?"

"Then what am I supposed to do?!" she asked, still punching him. Luffy grabbed her arms. "I don't have anything else to risk…"

"What about us?!" he yelled. "Try risking our lives along with yours! We're your friends!"

Vivi started crying.

"We're your friends," he said. "You're the one suffering the most and you want to beat the hell out of him more than anyone."

Nami and I hugged Vivi tightly.

"Now tell me. Where's Crocodile?" Luffy asked.

"Everyone…" she said, breaking the hug. "Luffy-san's right. We have to go to where Crocodile is."

"So we don't have to deal with any more pain-in-the-ass detours, right?" Zoro asked.

"So where is this guy?" Sanji asked.

Nami pulled out the map of Alabasta. "This is the capital, Alburna…" Vivi said, pointing to the capital marked with a star on the map. "Right now, the Rebel Army is here," she pointed to Katorea. "and they want to attack Alburna."

"So we just beat Crocodile before they get there," Sanji said simply.

"Crocodile is here," she pointed across the map to a city called Rainbase. "If we travel directly north, we'll reach it in a day or so."

* * *

><p>With our new destination set and our brilliant navigator knew where to go, we turned around and headed for Rainbase.<p>

"We're here," Vivi said atop Lashes when we saw a city in the distance. She bit her lip and look angry.

"Woohoo!" Luffy yelled. "I'm gonna kick Crocodile's ass!"

We walked towards the city with wary footsteps. And then Zoro had to make me even more stressed out.

"Do you guys think Baroque Works knows we're in this country now?" he asked.

"Most likely," Nami said. "We ran into Mr. 2 on our way here. It's safe to assume they know we're here."

"But what if this is a trap?!" I asked. "What if they're waiting for us in the city and we'll be surrounded and we won't be able to get out and then they take over the country and kill us all?!"

"Woah, calm down, Magnolia," Zoro said.

Nami hit me lightly on the head.

"We'll, she does have a point," Usopp said. "They do know what we look like so we can't just run all over Rainbase and not expect to be caught."

"Assassination is their specialty," Zoro said.

"But what if-" I tried to say.

"Just don't think about all the 'what if's," Nami said. "You'll explode from all the anxiety."

"Actually, that's not possible," Chopper said.

"I was exaggerating!" Nami said.

I took a deep breath and said, "Ok, nothing bad will happen."

"That's just being too optimistic," Zoro said. "If we're here, something always will happen."

"Fine then!" I yelled angrily. "You don't have to be so mean!"

"I'm not being mean, you little-"

"SHUT UP!" Nami yelled. "Both of you!" She hit both of us on the head. "Jeez, you're both being annoying."

Zoro rolled his eyes at Nami and glared at me for a long time. I stuck my tongue out at him crossed my arms.

"Well, no matter what happens, I'll protect Nami-san, Vivi-chan, and Magnolia-chan!" Sanji said. "I'll be your prince~"

"First things first," Usopp said. "Water!"

They ran off into the city to get some water.

We found shade over by the outskirts of the city. Chopper left to go pee.

"Maybe we shouldn't have let them go…" Sanji said.

"It's only a simple errand. They'll manage," Nami said.

"Think so?" Zoro asked. "Knowing them, they'll come running back with trouble behind them. We should probably prepare ourselves."

"Don't say that!" I said, starting to get anxious.

"It's probably true, though," he said.

Sanji heard commotion and looked into the street. "They're being chased by marines again…"

"You have got to be kidding me!" Nami said.

"I told you!" Zoro scoffed at me.

I clenched my fist in anger as we started running into the city with the marines following after us.

"We shouldn't be running around the city like this!" Usopp yelled. "Baroque Works will notice us!"

"I think they already have…" Zoro said.

"Then let's go to where Crocodile is!" Luffy suggested.

"Right," Vivi said, pointing ahead. "Do you see that building with a crocodile on the roof?" It was kinda hard to miss it. "That's where Crocodile is!"

"We'd better split up!" Sanji said.

"Meet you there, guys!" Luffy said.

There was a fork in the road up ahead and I took a left. We all split up and ran to the giant casino called Rain Dinners owned by Crocodile.

I got to the casino first, soon followed by Nami, Usopp, and Zoro. We figured everyone else was inside and ran inside to join them.

"What do we do now?" Luffy asked.

"Without Vivi, we don't know where Crocodile is," Usopp said.

All of a sudden Cpt. Smoker burst through the door and started yelling at us. We all ran deeper into the casino.

"Wait, look up ahead," Usopp said. I saw that there were people making way for us. They were showing us into a VIP room.

We thought it was an invitation to Crocodile, so we went ahead. I had a nagging feeling in the pit of my stomach that this was a trap. I should've listened.

The doors opened and we walked inside, finally avoiding all the people chasing after us.

"The path forks up ahead!" Usopp called. "VIPs to the right and pirates to the left."

"Which way do we go…?" I asked.

Luffy turned left, were the pirates should go.

"STRAW HAT!" I heard Cpt. Smoker yell behind us.

I scream as the floor dropped from under us and because of Cpt. Smoker.

_I knew it was a trap!_ I thought.

We all fell into a giant cage.

I sat against the bars and feel a little weak, so I lay down and closed my eyes.

* * *

><p>"Oi, oi! Magnolia!" I heard Usopp whisper a couple minutes later. "Get up!"<p>

I felt his hands around my wrists as he forced me to stand. I suddenly felt much better.

"Thank you," I said.

"It's the cage," he whispered. "It takes away Devil Fruit powers."

"If you want to get to Alburna, I suggest you leave right away, Miss Wednesday," I heard a deep voice say. I looked up to see none other than Crocodile, Miss All Sunday and Vivi. "Or will you save them instead? Too bad I accidentally dropped the key into the lower chamber… The Bananagator Den."

Vivi looked down and her face turned pale. I couldn't understand what was going on.

"What's wrong, Vivi?" Luffy asked.

"One of the Bananagators swallowed the key!" she said.

"Make him spit it out!" he yelled.

"There's no way I could!" she said. "The Bananagators can even feed on Sea Kings!"

"Sorry I handled the key so carelessly," Crocodile said, totally lying. "And I don't think you'll even be able to tell which on swallowed it."

"What an asshole!" Nami said.

"If we could open the cage, I'd take care of those freaking crocs," Zoro said, readying his sword.

"But we can't get out because it swallowed the key…" I said.

"I know that!" he snapped.

Crocodile cleared his throat and snapped his fingers. "Well, then," he said. The door out of the room opened. "It's about time we were on our way. Oh, and one more thing. This room will self-destruct in exactly one hour."

I started mentally counting.

"Water will flood into this room and it will sink to the bottom of Rainbase Lake," he said. "One million people or five measly pirates with no future. Your choice, Miss Wednesday. The chances of saving either are slim at best." He laughed and said, "Do you like gambling?" He laughed again and continued talking. "There are so many idiots in this country that my job was all too easy, especially the young rebels and that old man digging holes in Yuba."

"What did you say?!" Luffy asked, getting angry.

"He tries to dig up a long-dead oasis day after day with his stubbornness," Crocodile mocked. "What a stupid old man. Despite the sandstorms, he refuses to give up. Tell me Straw Hat, do you think sandstorms repeatedly strike the same town?" Crocodile smirked evilly.

"You…!" Luffy said angrily.

Crocodile laughed as he turned around and walked away with Miss All Sunday.

Multiple floor tiles shot up and water spurted out of them, threatening to flood the room.

"Water's gushing in!" Usopp yelled in terror. "At this rate, the room's gonna be completely filled! Vivi! Help us! Do something!"

"I don't think this is going to take an hour to fill up…" I said nervously.

"Don't panic, morons," Zoro said.

"How can you not panic at a time like this?!" Usopp yelled.

"Vivi! Do something! Get us out of here!" yelled Luffy. "If we die here, then who's gonna kick his ass?!"

All of a sudden, a huge Bananagator came into the room. It was so big, it probably took up over one fourth of the room! I backed up into the farthest corner of the cage, but stayed away from the bars.

"Beat it up, Vivi!" Luffy cheered.

Usopp yelled how ridiculous he sounded because of the monster's size. He also told her to run for it, but to save us as well.

"Now you're the one being ridiculous!" Nami said. "Look out the window!"

I didn't even want to look.

"They're lining up like we're their food," Zoro said.

I winced and tried to accept the fact that this was probably going to kill everyone.

Vivi started trying to run away from the Bananagator, but it was too fast and strong for her. But then, something made it stop.

"The Shitty Restaurant?" Usopp asked. "Is that what the Transponder Snail said?"

"That must mean-"

"SAN-" Luffy tried to yell, but was stopped by Usopp.

"They don't know about him yet!" he whispered hoarsely.

"What's going on?" I asked. "I can't hear what's happening!"

"Sanji's on the Transponder Snail," Nami whispered quietly.

I smiled and whispered, "Sanji-san and Chopper-san are still outside!"

"PRINCE-SAN!" Usopp yelled. "Come save us! We don't have much time!"

_Prince-san?_ I thought. _Is that what Sanji is calling himself?_

Everyone tensed up and went silent for some reason, but I couldn't hear what was going on!

"The useless idiot got caught!" Zoro yelled, angry.

I gasped and said, "Not Prince-san!"

"He'd better be alive" Zoro yelled.

"Our last hope…" Nami said.

Vivi started running again, but the Bananagator noticed and chomped down. I screamed and hoped that Vivi was ok. She was holding onto the stair case and pulled herself up.

"We have some time before this room fills!" she said. "I'm going outside to help."

Crocodile pushed her back onto the now wet floor and said, "Don't try anything stupid. If you love your friends that much, go ahead and die with them. I think I'll bring that cocky punk Mr. Prince here too. As a corpse!" He laughed as he walked away for good.

If the water gets above knee level for Devil Fruit users, then they'll be useless. Since I was the shortest one here, that meant I only had minutes before someone would have to save me.

Needless to say, I started panicking.

Vivi could barely move, there was a Bananagator in the room, the room was filling up with water to drown us all, Sanji and Chopper were nowhere to be found, and Sanji was caught by the enemy.

Right as the Bananagator chomped at the stairs Vivi had managed to climb once again, the force of the impact made all the windows burst and let even more water come in.

"At this rate, the room's going to sink in less than twenty minutes!" Usopp said.

"Everyone! Hang on a little longer!" Vivi said, safe and still on the stairs. "I'll get help! I won't let any of you die!"

She ran out of the room and we bid her farewell and good luck.

I couldn't imagine that the situation could get any better or worse.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	17. Magnolia vs Zoro

**Author's Note:**

**Ok, judging by the title, you probably think some stuff goes down in this chapter. And you would be absolutely correct. I know this was probably out of the blue, so I am going to warn you for possible out-of-character-ness (Zoro). I'm not really sure if he is or not, but just to be safe I warned you. And this is a shorter chapter than the normal three(ish) thousand words I normally do (this one being about 2,500). Also, I'm probably really bad at writing fight scenes, so sorry if it's lame… **

**So yeah, enjoy this chapter!**

"If this cage fills, we're done for!" I said, noticing that the water pouring from the lake was starting to seep onto the floor of the cage. Within seconds it was at my ankles.

Nami started egging the Bananagator on so it would bite open the cage and let us all out. Eventually it did try to bite the cage, but its teeth… broke.

"Oi, you," said Cpt. Smoker who was just chilling on the floor smoking two cigars.

"How can you be so damn calm?!" Luffy and Usopp asked angrily.

The water was up to my knees now.

"How much do you know of Crocodile's objectives?" he asked, ignoring the two. "That woman with him has been wanted by the Government for twenty years. Her bounty is over 70,000,000 Berries."

"Um… Luffy-san…" I said shakily. He ignored me.

"That's almost as much as Crocodile's…" Nami said.

"If they're working together, this isn't simply about taking over a country," he said. "If they aren't stopped, this will develop into a disaster that will engulf the entire world."

The water became too much for me to bear and I sank into water with all of the strength diffusing from my body.

* * *

><p>I woke up sputtering water. I opened my eye and saw that Sanji was looming over me.<p>

"Are you awake, Magnolia-chan?" he asked. I blinked a couple times and nodded.

I sat up and said, "What happened?"

"We escaped and Smoker let us get away," Nami said.

"Wow, really?" I asked.

"Yep," she said.

"Wait why are we on a giant crab?" I asked, noticing what we were all riding.

"Chopper got us transportation to Alburna!" Usopp said. "We don't have to walk!"

I smiled at Chopper, who was steering the crab and winked back at me.

"Where's Luffy-san?" I asked, noticing he wasn't here. Everyone looked somber. "Did he… drown?!"

"No, no," Vivi said. "Crocodile tried to take me off of this crab, but Luffy switched places with me…"

"Oh," I said. I looked around at everyone, but as I made eye contact with Zoro, he rolled his eyes and looked away. I sighed and noticed that it was almost night time.

All of a sudden Usopp freaked out and said, "What?! They can't go across water?!" he was talking to Vivi.

"These crabs are accustomed to the dessert and can't stand water," she explained.

"But it's a crab!" he said. "A _crab_!" He pulled out the map and said, "This river is practically an ocean. If we have to cross it we'll never make it in time! And even if we cross it, there's still ten of kilometers left to go by foot!"

"Couldn't we just run the rest of the way?" Nami asked.

"We'll never make it!" he said hopelessly. "There's just no way!"

Sanji turned around and claimed he already saw the river.

"Please do something, Scissors-kun~" Nami pleaded.

"Oh, that's right!" Chopper said. "Scissors loves dancing girls!"

Nami took off her cloak to reveal her dancer outfit. The crab didn't even notice he was walking over the water.

"Woohoo!" Usopp cheered. "Run the whole way! Go! You can make it!"

That's when we started sinking…

* * *

><p>I woke up on the shore of the Sandora River with Sanji carrying me.<p>

"Thank you, Sanji-san," I said.

"No problem, Magnolia-chan~" he said, letting me down.

Zoro was glaring at me, but as soon as he noticed I was looking at him, he rolled his eyes and averted his gaze.

"We're making good time," he said to the group. "Think we'll make it?"

"It's hard to say," Vivi admitted. "Even riding Lashes, we still might not make it."

"Is there any way to get us all there together?" Usopp asked.

Nami looked off into the distance and squinted. "Look over there!" she said.

"Is it the enemy?!" Usopp asked.

"No, it's…" Vivi said, "Karoo! And the Super Sonic Duck Squad!" The group of seven ducks stopped in front of us. "You've come to help us!" They all saluted us. I saluted back. Vivi said that they were the fastest ducks in the kingdom and could get us there on time.

People were already picking ducks to ride, so when everyone was taken, Vivi and I were left to ride Lashes. I bet she was pretty bummed not being able to ride her own bird.

"Do you think Lashes can keep up with them?" I asked Vivi.

"I have confidence he can!" she said, finally looking hopeful.

We were about to get on the animals and head towards Alburna when I noticed that, once again, Zoro was glaring at me and dropped his gaze when I made eye contact with him.

It was getting pretty annoying and I was curious as to why he was staring at me. So, with a level-head I confronted him.

"Um, Zoro-san?" I asked. "Why do you keep staring at me?'

"I'm not," he said curtly.

"But you were a little while ago…" I said.

"I wasn't," he said, walking away.

I grabbed his wrist and said, "I know what I saw. Can you please just tell me?"

He flicked his wrist to stop me from holding it and turned to me with a scary look on his face. He loomed over me menacingly. I felt like he was a giant and I was an ant that he was about to squish. He said, "It's annoying how you're so freaked out over everything and need to be saved all the time."

_Where the heck did that come from…? _I thought.

"Woah, Zoro," Nami said. "You guys were fine before Alabasta, what happened?" Nami was trying to fix it, but it wasn't going to work.

"She's weak," he said, pointing at me but talking to Nami. "And I'm getting tired of everyone having to save her."

"She can't help it she has Devil Fruit powers, Zoro," Nami said, scolding him. "Not to mention she's only twelve."

I didn't even know what to say.

"Don't be so mean to Magnolia-chan!" Sanji said angrily.

"I'm not being mean, I'm telling the truth," he said.

"Maybe if you didn't say things that made me stressed out I wouldn't be," I said, trying to defend myself.

"That would only take care of one of the problems," he said. "You're still the weakest one on the team."

My eyes widened and I was shocked.

"Oi, Zoro," Usopp said. "What about Nami and me?"

"You guys can at least swim," he said.

"Why you-" Sanji said, grabbing him by the shirt.

Zoro pushed him off and turned to me. "So what if you can stop time? Take that away and what are you? If you don't have skills to go with it, your powers are worthless to you and the whole crew."

"Zoro, stop," Nami said sternly. "You're going to hurt her feelings."

I was already hurt, but I replaced that with anger. "I don't have skills?" I asked. "Who got you on top of that building in Whiskey Peak without being seen?"

"But you couldn't jump up on your own," he said. "And I could've gotten up there on my own, I just asked you as a precaution."

"Stop this!" Nami yelled. "Both of you are being idiots!"

I didn't care, I was shaking with rage. "If I'm so weak, then why haven't you just kicked me out of the crew?!"

"I'm not the captain," he said. "But I would've."

"Don't say that, Zoro!" Nami shrieked.

"I've never lost a fight, you have!" I yelled. "And that stupid scar is there to prove it!"

"That's because you've never been in a fight!" he yelled back.

Sanji punched Zoro straight across the face. "Don't you dare talk like that to a lady!" he said.

Zoro stood back up, wiped his cheek and yelled, "Stay out of this!"

That was it. I was bubbling with wrath. "Fight me!" I screamed. "Right now!"

Zoro laughed and said, "It wouldn't be much of a fight. I doubt I even need to pick up my sword."

There was no stopping us now. Nami held the back of my cloak and said, "You're not really gonna do this, are you?! It's Zoro! He's a monster!"

"I don't care," I said. "I'm not going to stand by and get insulted like this!"

Nami let my cloak go. She back away and held Sanji back with Usopp.

This was it. I was going to fight Zoro for real.

* * *

><p>Everyone made way for the duel about to take place. The lineup: Magnolia vs. Zoro, Time vs. Swords. Who will win?<p>

I knew that I really didn't have much of a chance if he went serious on me, so I knew what I would have to do when we started fighting.

"Any rules?" I asked him.

"First one with their shoulders on the ground loses," he said. "Good with you?"

I nodded. He smirked and I started counting down. "On the count of three, then," I said. "One… Two… Three!"

Within seconds I drew my blade and he just stood there smirking. I furrowed my brows in anger. He was underestimating me.

"Tick-Tock," I whispered. As soon as he heard me utter my words, signaling my attack, he was already darting towards me. He was about a foot away from me when I stopped time.

"Woah…" I said, taking a step back. "He's fast. Of course he's fast! Stupid…"

I dug into my bag and pulled out a pair of handcuffs I attached them to both of his wrists and walked farther away from him.

"Un-Tock," I said, starting time again.

"Crap!" he said, looking at the handcuffs. "Just kidding." He broke the chain by pulling his hands apart and unclasped them with his bare hands.

"Wh-what?!" I said, shocked.

Before I realized what happened, I was being thrown backwards and onto the ground, shoulders down.

"Maggie-chan!" I heard Nami said in fear.

"Tick-Stop!" I cried, stopping Zoro himself. It gave me time to recover and regain my balance without touching the ground. I moved out of the way as I started time again.

"That's annoying!" he yelled at me.

I stuck my tongue out at him and said, "Rewound!"

It was a new technique I'd been practicing since I learned I could see the future. I started slowing things down. I actually tried it out on Usopp once without him noticing it, but it only worked for a couple seconds.

With Zoro much slower than normal, I ran up to him and tried to push him to the ground. But even when he was slow, he was still incredibly strong. He barely budged.

As soon as he regained his normal speed, I started to feel the beginnings of fatigue set in: I had shortness of breath and my muscles were aching.

But even with myself growing ever tired, I jumped into the air (more like hurled myself) and went straight for him with my dagger.

He drew his sword so quickly and deflected my attack. I bounced off and landed on my butt. I struggled to get to my feet quick enough. I stopped time, just to make sure he wouldn't sneak-attack me.

I got up and dusted myself off. When I looked up, the tip of his sword was almost at my nose and he looked ready to strike.

I took a step back in fear and bit my lip in anxiety. _He might be too fast… I might not be able to keep up with him, even if I can stop time!_

I walked behind the frozen Zoro and started time again.

He turned around almost automatically and set me flying backwards with his fist instead of his sword.

The impact was nostalgic of Arlong's meaning that it hurt probably as bad as his. I fell into the sand on my stomach, thankfully not my shoulders. I struggled to get on all fours. It hurt really badly, I was sure he broke something.

I felt his sword rest on my back while I struggled to stand up.

"It's over," he said.

Somehow I forced myself to stand up, and the pain subsided.

"What did you just do…?" he asked.

"What… do you mean?" I asked.

"Never mind…" he said. And within a second he sheathed his sword and raised it in the air. But before he could do anything, my knees gave out. While I was falling he rushed his sheath down and the butt of his sword hit my head, ultimately knocking me to the ground, unconscious and on my back.

He won and I blacked out, but I woke up seconds later.

Chopper and Vivi were sitting down next to me. Chopper was assessing my wounds and Vivi was just there to make sure I was ok.

"You're awake already?!" Chopper asked. "Something like that wound put you out for hours!"

I sat up and felt completely fine.

"Don't push yourself," Vivi said.

"I feel fine," I said honestly.

"After that?!" Chopper asked. "Are you some kind of monster like Zoro?!" He pushed me back on the ground and felt my stomach and chest. "Nothing broken… Does it hurt anywhere?" I shook my head. "Are you sure?" I nodded. "Ok, nothing broken and nothing bruised… I guess you really are ok…"

"ZORO!" I heard Usopp, Sanji, and Nami yell.

I sat up and looked over. Zoro had his back to everyone, which was not smart considering what happened next. All three of them started beating him to a pulp yelling at him for beating me up.

When they finished he walked over to me and said he was sorry. Well, this is what he actually said:

"It was just a test of will, idiot," he said.

Queue Nami hitting and Sanji kicking him.

I smiled and said, "Its ok, I forgive you."

"JUST LIKE THAT?!" everyone else asked me.

I admit, I'm a competitive person and can be very rash at times, but sincere apologies like that cannot make me hold a grudge for a second longer. Even if it was curt, it was the best he could do and that was enough for me.

He smirked and held out his first. I fist-bumped him and everything was ok between us.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	18. Stop the Rebellion!

Once we got within seeing distance of Alabasta, we switched up the animals we were riding. Lashes had to accept that Usopp was now going to ride him. So Vivi hopped onto Karoo and I was told to ride with her. Also, we put on matching tan colored cloaks in case Baroque Works was waiting for us. They wouldn't who was who since we all matched.

We were a couple miles away from the capital city when a baseball was shot at us. Zoro yelled for us to dodge it, which everyone did. It soon exploded.

We all split up in pairs of two ducks, heading to one of the gates to enter the city. Vivi and I waited until everyone was safely into the city with a member of Baroque Works following them.

"Ready?" she asked me.

"Ready!" I said.

Karoo ran to the South side of the city. Vivi got off in the middle of the dessert, but she told me to stay on. I could feel the ground rumbling as the Rebel Soldiers made their way to the city with over two million in number. Karoo was quaking in fear, but Vivi told him it was going to be ok.

Vivi looked to me and said, "If things go badly and they start to trample us, you know what to do."

I nodded.

Soon, we could hear the leader yelling orders at his troops in the distance. I could also see the soldiers riding on their camels and horses towards the city in anger.

When they got close enough, Vivi spread her arms and yelled at the top of her lungs, "Stop, Rebel Army! This battle was set up."

No one heard her.

"I beg you! Listen to what I have to say!"she screamed desperately.

No one heard her.

The soldiers started firing at them, so her screams were drowned out by cannon fire. There weren't far away from us. I wondered if they would actually hear her. The smoke from the cannonball clouded everything.

"Everyone, please stop!" Vivi pleaded. "Leader! LEADER!"

But it was too late. Out of the smoke came the first soldier riding a black horse. It was the leader, Koza. Even more of them came, not even noticing us.

Soon, one of them ran over Vivi. I screamed Vivi's name and she sat up, seemingly fine.

I stopped time and ran over to her. I touched her arm and asked, "Are you ok?!"

"For now…" she said. "They won't listen to me!"

"We need to get out of here or they'll trample us to death," I said.

"But I can still-"

"It's too late for this plan," I said. "We need to rethink our strategy and leave the rest to everyone inside the city."

"You're probably right…" she said.

I helped her up and we both got on Karoo, we fled to safety and I started time again. My breath was taken away from me almost instantaneously.

The sound of cannon fire rang through my ears and made Vivi extremely angry and sad.

"We tried so hard…" she said. "But it's already begun…!" She wiped away a tear in her eyes and said, "But I'm going to stop them! I'll try again, no matter how many times it takes! This isn't going to all be in vain!"

A horse rode up to us and I looked up to see Usopp. "So this is where you've been!" he said.

"Usopp-san!" we both said.

"You can still make it," he said. "Hurry, get on."

"But what about Magnolia-san and Karoo?" she asked. "There's not room for them."

"That bird and her can meet up with the rest of the crew," he said. "Only you can stop the rebellion, or it'll get worse."

Vivi stayed put.

"What's wrong?" Usopp asked. "Hurry up and get on!"

She turned around and got off Karoo. "Usopp-san," she said. "Prove yourself."

He laughed and said, "You don't think it's me?" He lifted his sleeve to reveal the bandage over the mark we all had in case something like this were to happen. "Look!"

"You… You're not Usopp-san," she said.

"Well, well…" he said. He brought his hand to his face and it changed into Mr. 2, Bon Clay. "I wonder how you found me out. I thought it was perfect."

_It's not Usopp?! _I thought._ How did she know?!_

"Zero-chan told me you were all wearing the same white bandages on your arms…" he said. Mr. 2 jumped off the horse and ditched Usopp's clothes (now in his silly ballet outfit) and sing-songed, "Princess Vivi, this desert will be your grave~"

I pulled Vivi onto Karoo and he started sprinting away towards the nearest gate into the city.

"Thank you both!" Vivi said, taking the reins.

Karoo squawked and kept barreling towards the stairs.

"No! If we try to go straight through, we'll be trapped on the stairs!" she said. "You can let me off; I'll fight him, Karoo!"

Karoo wasn't listening to her, but he veering off towards the cliff.

"You wouldn't dare…" she said. "Hold on tightly!" she said to me.

Karoo started running up the side of the cliff to the city. We almost reached the top when he lost momentum and started falling. Karoo flapped his wings furiously, trying to get to the top. He finally grabbed the top of the cliff.

"You're incredible, Karoo!" Vivi praised. "You flew!"

"Now Mr. 2 won't be able to-" I said.

I looked back and said him running up the side of the cliff as well. Karoo scrambled to his feet and ran on top of the cliff, making it into the city.

We saw people fighting in the streets. Rebels versus the Royals. Vivi tensed up and said with calm anger in her voice, "Karoo, can you make it through the battlefield?"

He squawked in confirmation.

"I'll never find Koza amongst this fighting," she said. "Let's head to the palace and find Chaka, before the Rebel Army makes if to the heart of the city."

Karoo started running right as Mr. 2 came to the top.

All of a sudden, a stray bullet hit Karoo and he went down.

"Karoo!" Vivi yelled as we tumbled off him.

Mr. 2 was catching up with us. "I'll finish off you two!" he yelled.

Karoo squawked one last time and two other ducks came out of nowhere and rammed Mr. 2 away from us.

"You've done well, Captain Karoo," I heard a beautifully familiar voice say.

"Sanji-san!" I said.

"You guys can go, I'll take it from here," he said. "You still gotta stop the rebellion, right?"

Vivi turned to the other ducks and said, "Take care of Karoo." They both saluted us. She turned to me and said, "Ready, Magnolia-san?"

"Ready!" I said, saluting her.

We started running towards the palace by taking the side streets to avoid the majority of the fighting. We could still hear the clangs of metal, the blasts of guns, and the screams of dying men.

When we made it to the North Block (where the palace is located), we found a blockade where Royal Soldier lie in wait.

Two of them came out and asked if we were rebels. We were tired from running and had our hand on our knees, panting. The other soldier hit the one that asked that. "There's a kid, they're civilians!" he said.

"We ordered all citizens not involved in the battle to evacuate," said the other.

"I know," Vivi said.

That's when she lifted her head up. They all recognized her as the princess and came down from the blockade.

"Where's my father?" she asked.

"W-well…" said one of the soldiers.

"In that case, take me to Chaka," she said. "I need him to do something!"

"What about the kid?" another asked.

"She's protecting me," Vivi said. "It's ok."

The Royal Soldiers escorted us to the palace.

"What's the favor?" I asked her quietly.

"We're going to blow up the palace," she said.

…

...

...

"WHAT?!"

* * *

><p>Right as the soldiers was about to light the charges that would blow up the palace, a large wave of sand blew in and knocked them out.<p>

The sand all came together and Crocodile appeared. "You're being rather rash, Miss Wednesday," he said. "This is going to be my house, you know."

"Crocodile…" she said. But it wasn't only Crocodile now. Miss All Sunday appeared, as well. "Father!" Vivi said. I noticed Crocodile was holding a man.

"The palace isn't half bad," Crocodile said. "I get a good view of those little pawns down there."

"Where's Luffy-san?!" I asked.

"Straw Hat?" he asked. "What a worthless excuse for a rookie. He's dead." He laughed evilly.

"Luffy-san's dead?" Vivi asked. "That's nothing but nonsense!"

"Far from it," Crocodile said. "Straw Hat is buried beneath the sands of Rainbase. Had he not been involved with you, Miss Wednesday, he'd still be alive."

"Someone like you can't kill Luffy-san!" Vivi screamed at him.

"You're only brave enough to yell at me because those wimpy pirates are willing to give their lives for you," he accused.

"So what if we are?!" I yelled. "We're friends!"

"Don't make me laugh, little shit," he said. "Your captain is dead. Give it up."

All three of them came down to our level. They 'immobilized' the king by nailing his shoulders and elbows to the wall of the palace.

"Let him go!" Vivi yelled.

"Do you really think I'd go through the trouble of immobilizing him just to let him go because you asked?" Crocodile said. "Good grief, use your common sense."

Vivi's father lifted his head and said he was sorry.

"Now, Miss Wednesday-"

"Don't call me that!" she yelled.

Crocodile rolled his eyes as he lit a cigar and put it in his mouth. "First off, I have no intention of letting anyone here live," he said. "It's only natural for the Royal Family to fall along with its kingdom." He turned to the king. "But before I take the throne, I have a question for you." He walked over to the king. "Cobra. Where is Pluton?"

"H-How do you know that name?" King Cobra asked.

Crocodile just laughed. I looked to Vivi in confusion, but she looked just as confused as everyone else.

"It's said that with one shot, it has the power to wipe out an entire island and all of its inhabitants," Crocodile explained. "It lies dormant within this very country."

_It seems that mean all over the world will do anything to be the most powerful…_ I thought in disgust.

"Father, did you know about this?" Vivi asked.

"The secret passed down through the Royal Line…" Chaka said.

Crocodile turned to everyone and said, "This is my true objective since I began this venture. I'll be able to create the world's most powerful military nation in the world."

"Everything you've done is for that ambition?!" Chaka asked, repulsed.

"When I'm king, I'll have no problem recruiting pirates from far and wide," he said. "I can surpass even the World Government."

"The World Government would never allow that," King Cobra lashed.

"Exactly," he said. "That's why I need Pluton."

"Not even I know where it is or even if it exists!" he said.

"I see," Crocodile said, taking the cigar out of his mouth. "I've already planned for that. Even I'm not completely certain that it exists." Some of the ash of the cigar fell to the ground. "If everything goes according to plan, in twenty minutes the Rebel Army will reach the Palace Square. And then, in half an hour, exactly 4:30, I've arranged for a giant bomb to be fired into the square."

Everyone gasped.

"The lovely scenery will dramatically change from a range of about five kilometers. Everyone will be obliterated," he said. "You should be happy. I thought you wanted to see the rebellion end."

"What have we ever done to you?!" Vivi screamed at him. Chaka held her back from charging at Crocodile foolishly.

"Now then, I'll ask a different question," Crocodile said, turning to the King. "Where is the Poneglyph?"

"If I tell you where it is… No. I'll take you there," the king said.

Chaka finally drew his sword, getting ready to attack, when all of a sudden more Royal Soldiers burst through the gates into the palace courtyard.

"Who are you?" Crocodile asked.

Vivi whispered to me that they were the four strongest palace guards. King Cobra said that it was useless if they tried to attack Crocodile. But of course, having sworn to protect the king they attacked Crocodile, only to die within seconds.

This made Chaka extremely angry. He turned into a jackal (Zoan Devil Fruit) and charged for Crocodile, despite the warnings of the king.

He, too, was beaten.

"Chaka!" Vivi screamed as she shed a tear.

"Vivi…" said a man who had just walked in.

Vivi looked taken aback. "K-Koza?!" she asked, recognizing the man.

"Do my eyes deceive me?" he asked, looking at all the carnage in the palace courtyard. "I came to demand the Royal Army's surrender, but Chaka and the King are dying at the hands of this country's hero. I don't believe it."

Crocodile laughed. "Even though the battle still rages on, both the leaders have met here."

"You seem to be confused," said Ms. All Sunday. "It's only natural. Just imagine your worst case scenario and compare."

Koza's face was laced with horror. He was the leader of the Rebel Army and he realized that the whole reason for fighting was a complete set up. "Who stole this country's rain, Vivi?" he demanded to know.

"It was-"

"Me," said Crocodile. He then explained that everything was a part of his plan to blame the King for the country's demise and send it into chaos and war. "You would've died happily if you'd only remained ignorant."

The king yelled for Koza not to listen. He said that it was it was up to him to save as many people as he could now that he knew the truth.

I felt very out of place. This wasn't really my problem and I couldn't exactly do anything to help out, so I felt very useless and misplaced.

_Well… this is awkward… I'm supposed to be helping, but I'm not doing anything at all!_ I thought to myself.

That's when Chaka, with all the breath he could muster, yelled out that the Palace Square would be the target of a huge bomb in less than thirty minutes. "HURRY!"

And with that, Crocodile placed a final blow on him. He was most definitely finished.

Koza started running for the gates, but Vivi chased after him and screamed no. Vivi pinned him down and said that if he told everyone there was a bomb, it would cause huge panic and not help anything. "No one will be saved!" she cried. "The only one who can stop this is you!"

All of a sudden, Crocodile disappeared as Koza stood up and Vivi calmed down. He reappeared next to Vivi, ready to strike.

"Did you really think I would sit by and idling watch as you did that?" he asked.

Even before I could react to push them out of the way by stopping time, Chaka jumped down and blocked the blow.

_How is that man still alive?!_

"As long as I have a shred of life in me, I will fight!" he yelled, resolute in his morals. "You two, as you were. I can hold him a few more minutes!"

Vivi nodded at her savior. "Magnolia-san, come with us!" she said to me as they started running towards the gates.

I ran after them as quickly as I could.

Vivi yelled at the top of the stairs where the Royal Army was guarding. "Fly the white flag!" she demanded. "I command you to surrender!"

"Listen to Vivi!" Koza yelled. "We no longer desire victory or war! This battle must end! I will inform the Rebel Army that the battle is meaningless. There's no reason to fight anymore. So to prevent worthless deaths, fly the white flag! I beg of you!"

The Royal Army did as the two said. I didn't even know why they asked me to come… I did nothing as usual.

The Rebel Army stopped in their tracks when they saw the Royals with the white flags of surrender. Even Koza went down to raise a flag.

"THE BATTLE," he yelled, "IS OVER! Throw down your weapons and let go of your anger. The Royal Army no longer wishes to fight!"

Vivi cringed at the top of the stairs. I tried to calm her anxiety by saying, "He'll stop it. He can do it."

She smiled weakly and said, "I hope so."

"The war is-"

Koza's words were cut short by gunfire aimed at him. He fell to the ground.

"KOOZZAA!" Vivi screamed at the top over her lungs.

I was in shock! How could anyone do that?! And not to mention, the fire came from the Royal Army, and not the Rebels! Baroque Works must've infiltrated the Royal Army!

Needless to say, the Rebel was quite literally up in arms over their leader being shot. They attacked the Royal Army without hesitation.

That's when sand suddenly filled the air near the battlefield. I heard shots fire and even more chaos ensued. The war was starting again…

Vivi and I looked at each other, knowing the culprit immediately.

"No!" Vivi yelled. "Stop fighting, everyone! Listen to me! Stop!"

It was no use. They couldn't hear here.

_Dang you, Crocodile!_ I yelled in my thoughts.

"Run, Vivi!" the king yelled over to us. "Get away from that man!"

She turned around and said defiantly, "No. You started that blinding cloud of sand. If I can stop the explosion, I can still save them!"

Crocodile looked very amused at her words. "If I do this, I can stop it. If I do that, I can stop it," he mimicked. "Open your eyes, princess. Your idealism disgusts me." He held out his hand, about to pick her up by the throat, but I stopped time and we moved behind him.

"Don't touch my friend," I said.

Crocodile turned around and glared at me evilly.

Before I knew what was happening, I was sent flying to the other end of the courtyard.

"Magnolia-san!" Vivi yelled.

I struggled to turn my head towards them. "D-don't hurt… Vivi-san…"

He picked her up by the throat again and said, "Even so, ideals can only be spoken by those powerful enough to carry them out. And that doesn't include you."

"I will never give up!" Vivi said. "You will never understand! I will save this country!"

I finally found my strength and stood up.

Crocodile still spouted nonsense about how everyone was going to die and there was nothing anyone could do to stop it. He got up on one of the divots in the wall and held Vivi over it. If he let go, she would undoubtedly fall to her death!

"Vivi-san!" I yelled. I tried to rush over to them, but was stopped by Ms. All Sunday. "Don't interfere," she warned. I tried to break free, but there were many arms holding me back.

_I'm supposed to protect Vivi! _I thought._ If I can't do that, then I'm completely useless!"_

"Crocodile!" the king begged. "Please, don't!"

"Your foolish attempt to save them has failed," he said.

I continued to struggle out of Ms. All Sunday's many grips.

"All of your beloved people will be slaughtered!" he yelled happily. "From the very beginning of your stupid venture you've made me laugh! All of you in this stupid country! And in the end, you couldn't stop anything. In fact, you've increased the number of casualties. You can't save this country. Farewell, Princess." He let go.

"Tick Stop!" I yelled, directing my attack at Vivi. I looked up and saw that it had worked; I froze her in time so she wouldn't fall. All I needed to do was break free and pull her back up.

Crocodile turned to me with the scariest expression I've ever seen in my life and said, "What the hell did you do, little shit?"

He started walking towards me ominously.

"You can't kill her," I said. "I'm here to protect her!"

"That's not what I asked," he replied, now towering over me. "Ms. All Sunday, let her go."

"Of course," she said, letting all of the hands disappear.

"Now, I'll ask again," he said, picking me up by the throat now. "What did you do?"

"Why should I tell a rotten-hearted man like you?" I said.

He smirked, puffing smoke into my face and said, "I only asked a simple question. What did you do?!"

"I froze her in time," I said.

"So you ate a Devil Fruit?" he asked. He squeezed harder around my throat, cutting off all of my air. "How unfortunate for you. I would've let you live a couple minutes longer."

"L-look be-behind you…" I struggled to say.

Luffy was running towards me with a barrel tied to his back.

"CROCODILE!" Luffy yelled. "Put Maggie down!"

Crocodile turned his head and said, "Straw Hat?"

"M-my captain… is g-gonna… k-k-kick your b-butt," I said, gasping for air.

He let me go and I took in as much air as my lungs could take.

Everything was going to be ok, now. Luffy was here and was going to finish Crocodile off.

"Maggie, get down the stairs, everyone's waiting for you," he said. "I'll handle things up here. You guys gotta stop that bomb."

"Ok!" I said, saluting my captain.

I took off running for the stair case and almost tripped a couple times from excitement. Everyone was ok! I joined up with everyone at the bottom.

"Magnolia-san!" Vivi said. "You saved me!"

She hugged me as soon as I reached the bottom step.

"That's what friends are for, right?" I said, panting.

"Are you ok?!" she asked.

"I'm fine, how about you?" I said.

"Fine as well," she said, smiling.

"Magnolia," Zoro said. "We have thirteen minutes to find the bomber. Can you keep track of the time?"

I laughed and said, "That's a silly question." I took off my eye patch and said, "Of course I can. I'm a time woman."

That's when I actually looked at Zoro. He had blood running down from his face and had open wounds on his chest. I gasped and looked around at everyone else. Usopp was in full bandages.

"What happened to everyone?!" I asked.

"No time," Sanji said. "We'll explain later. We need to find that bomber!"

"Right," I said. "Let's do it!"

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	19. Friends in High Places

"The bombers are most likely close to the Square," Vivi said.

"Why would you think that?!" Usopp asked. "If the diameter is five kilometer, wouldn't that kill them?"

"That's how Crocodile is," Nami said darkly. "He'd let his own men die."

"Bastard…" Sanji said.

"We'd better hurry," Zoro said.

Usopp said that we needed to split up and get going immediately. Pell, the man that brought Luffy here flew into the sky because he was a falcon.

Everyone split up and ran out of the sand cloud that loomed over the square.

I searched with Nami and Chopper. We ran through the streets, trying to find somewhere a big cannon of some sort could fit on top of one of the roofs.

"We can still find them in eight minutes!" I said. "I know we will!"

"But what if we don't?!" Chopper asked.

"Over 2,000,000 people will die…" Nami said.

I stopped for a second.

"What are you doing?!" Chopper asked. "We need to hurry!"

"Leave me here for a second or two. I'll catch up when I know where the bomb is," I said.

"Ok," they said. They looked confused, but did as I said anyway.

I sat down against the closest building I saw and closed my eyes. "Tick Tock Fate," I said.

I could feel the clock on my eye's hands stop and then move quickly.

_Where is the bomb?!_ I thought to myself.

All I kept seeing was the clock tower in the Square.

_No, not the time. I need the place where the bomb is!_

Yet again, I saw the clock tower. The hands were ticking away, telling me that we only had a couple minutes until the bomb would obliterate everyone.

_Stop showing me the dang clock tower! _I thought angrily._ I need to know where the freaking bomb is!_

My vision of the future zoomed to that all I could see was the clock on the tower. The seconds' hand slowly inched to fifty-nine seconds.

_One second and everything will blow up…_

That's when nothing happened. The time read four thirty in my vision but nothing was exploding.

_So we found it? _I asked myself._ But is it? Show me where it is already!_

My vision zoomed out and blurred out everything but the clock tower.

I opened my eyes in realization. "Oh!" I said, feeling stupid. "It's in the clock tower!"

I stood up and looked around. Nami and Chopper had gone on ahead so I couldn't see them anymore.

"Vivi… I need to find Vivi!" I said, taking off in the opposite direction. I looked at the clock tower in the distance.

We only had five minutes left!

I ditched that idea and started running for the clock tower.

I saw Pell flying overhead and called to him. "Pell-san!" I screamed, but he didn't hear me. "Dang it!"

I came across a dreadful sight. I ran straight into a street with many marines fallen dead on the ground. There was only one still alive and she was clutching a sword in her hand. I couldn't help but feel sorry for them, but I was out of time and needed to get to the clock tower as quickly as I could.

"Straw Hat?!" said the woman.

"Where'd he go?!" said Luffy's voice.

I stopped in my tracked and said, "Luffy-san?!"

"Maggie?!" he asked. "Do you know where Crocodile went?"

I shook my head and said, "I gotta get to the clock tower! That's where the bomb is, sorry!"

I ran passed him, continuing on. About a minute later, I ran into Vivi.

"I know where it is!" I yelled at her. "The clock tower!"

"Exactly!" she said. "The clock tower! How obvious!"

Usopp was nearby and heard what we'd said. "I'll call everyone here!" he said, shooting a red ball into the sky with his slingshot. "Special Attack! Red Snake Star!"

A column of red smoke burst into the air and alerted our friends to come immediately.

When they all gathered, they all asked how many minutes were left.

"Four," I said. "We have four minutes!"

"Then where's the bomber?!" Zoro asked.

"The clock tower!" Vivi said.

"Do we have enough time to get there?" Sanji asked.

"Undoubtedly so," I said. "We need to hurry!"

Vivi lead the way, knowing the quickest route.

"Are you sure we'll have enough time?" Zoro asked me.

"Positive," I said, sure of my timing skills. After all, who was better at controlling time than me? (I would come to know in the distant future that in fact there was only one other person better at controlling time than me.) "Are we almost there?"

"Almost," Vivi said.

We continued running towards the clock tower with time breathing down our necks and ticking away every second.

I could feel the hands of my clock eye ticking with every second that passed by. I'd never felt more pressured in my entire life. Everyone was counting on me to save everyone's lives, and if I failed, everyone was going to die.

I gulped and hoped for the best.

When we finally reached the clock tower, we had only two and a half minutes left.

We all stopped and everyone looked to me, seeing that I had a plan.

"What do we do know?" Nami asked. "How do we get up there?"

"There are stairs to get to the top," Vivi supplied.

"That'll take too long," Zoro said. "Let's just climb up."

Nami hit him and said that was a stupid idea.

"We'll use the stairs," I said. "I'll go with Vivi. You guys stay here and pray for the best."

"What happens if we don't make it in time?" Vivi asked.

"Well, at best I can give us eleven minutes to get up there," I said. "Including the two minutes we have now."

"We better hurry…" Vivi said. "Come on!"

I followed her through the secret door that led into the clock tower's stairwell and we started running up the stairs.

Once we got to about the third flight, we only had one minute left.

"How many more flights?!" I asked, already exhausted.

"About thirteen…" she said, panting as well.

"Go back down get someone who can run the fastest…" I said.

"But-"

"Just do it!" I said. I touched her hand and said, "Tick-Tock Extend: Vivi."

"What did you do?" she asked.

"Time's stopped, so we won't waste it," I said. "Now go! This is the first time I've used this so you might not have long!"

She started running down the stairs.

Surprisingly, it wasn't as hard as I thought to keep someone unfrozen without touching the other person.

She came back within a minute with Zoro.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

I dug out my handcuffs from my bag and strapped one end to my wrist and asked for his. I snapped it shut and said, "I need you to run up all these stairs."

"Got it," he said.

"Vivi-san, we're going on ahead. Leave it to us, I promise!" I said.

She nodded and Zoro took off running up the stairs. We were both moving through time, but Vivi was back to being frozen.

"Are we gonna make it?" he asked.

"Yes," I said, trying to keep up with him.

The thing is, when you're moving through frozen time, fatigue and pain can't be felt, so his wounds weren't bothering him.

"We have about one minute and thirty seconds, plus however long it takes until I can't stop time anymore," I said. "So probably seven and a half minutes to go up thirteen flights of stairs."

"You sure?" he asked.

"Not really…" I said. "Only estimating the seven minutes, but in know for a fact it's more than five."

"Then I'm going to go faster," he said, running as fast as he could up the stairs.

In fact, he was going so fast, my feet weren't even touching the ground. He was basically flying up the stairs and I was merely flapping in the wind as he exerted all the effort.

When we go to about the twelfth flight of stairs, I couldn't do it anymore. I started time with about a minute and eleven seconds left. Zoro had to go even faster now that I was completely limp and could barely move.

Once we got to the top floor, we saw two Baroque Works agents about to light a match that would trigger the giant cannon to blow up the whole Square.

And with seconds to spare, he knocked both of them out and blew out the match. Alburna was safe for now!

"We did it," he said.

I breathed a heavy sigh of relief and reached into my bag for the key to unlock the handcuffs. I put a shaky hand in the keyhole, unclasped them and put them back into my bag.

"Wait a second…" he said.

I fell onto the floor and struggled to stand back up.

"OH SHIT!" Zoro yelled. "GUYS! There's a timer on the bomb! It's still going to explode!"

"Wh…What?!" I said.

And with that, Vivi came running up the stairs.

"Please tell me I didn't just hear what I think you said…" she said.

"It's still gonna go off!" Zoro said.

"What are we going to do?!" she said, looking inside the big cannon. "It's going off in less than thirty seconds!" She fell to her knees in defeat and started yelling in frustration about how evil Crocodile was.

I finally found my footing and stood up.

That's when Pell flew in and went inside the cannon to retrieve the bomb. He took it out of the cannon and said a heartfelt goodbye to Vivi that almost made me cry. He flew out of the clock tower and into the sky as fast as he could.

"PELL!" she shouted as the bomb exploded with a huge boom.

She looked extremely pale as she stared into the sky and watched a single feather fall to the ground.

Even still, the battle waged on below us. I doubt the soldiers even noticed the blast.

Vivi heard them fighting and started yelling over and over again at the top of her lungs and with tears gushing out of her eyes, "Please stop fighting!"

"Vivi…" Zoro said.

Zoro and I just watched her in awe and heartbreak as she kept screaming at the people who never heard her.

When she bellowed the last scream, all of the sand disappeared from the air. That's when I knew that Luffy had beaten Crocodile. But something even more amazing happened after that.

I started seeing rain drops fall from the sky!

The sky turned dark and the clouds rumbled in and brought the long-needed rain to Alabasta.

I finally heard the sounds of war stop.

"Please don't fight anymore!" Vivi yelled over the silence.

And they all heard her.

"The rain's falling, just as it always has," she said. "And it will always fall again. The nightmare… has finally ended!"

I was moved to tears by her words.

But even still, the Rebels still thought that the Royal Army shot Koza, and that the King was still awful.

A shout was heard from the palace, "Throw down your weapons, Royal Army!"

It was Chaka.

I'm convinced that man is immortal… I thought to myself.

Another voice was heard from the square, "You-" the man coughed, "Ma! Ma! Ma! You too, Rebel Army."

It was Igaram! The man everyone thought died by the many hands of Ms. All Sunday.

Vivi started running down the steps of the clock tower and Zoro and I followed, helping each other get down.

When we got down, we saw that everyone else had left. We walked around for a while trying to find them.

"Papa!" Vivi called, seeing her dad across the street. "Everyone!"

We walked up to see Luffy being carried by King Cobra and everyone in the middle of the street. Vivi rejoined her father and the king gave us back our sleeping captain.

Vivi tried to get us to come with them to the palace, but of course, we all refused, saying we were exhausted.

After they had walked away, everyone collapsed in the middle of the street from multiple things. One, I think we were all relieved the battle was finally over and won. Two, everyone was injured in some way or another. And three, we were all just really tired.

* * *

><p>When we woke up, we were already in the palace. Usopp and Sanji left early to get groceries. Zoro went to train somewhere far away. Chopper was in the corner of the room making medicine with an old man observing his medical skills. Luffy was still asleep.<p>

With nothing else to do, I followed Nami into the library. I wasn't really interested in the books she was looking at (history books and things of that nature), but it was fun to look at some of the fairy tales Alabasta told to their children. The king even said we could take some of the books if we wanted too!

We spent the whole day in the library reading as much as we could. The fairy tales of Alabasta were very interesting. There were characters I'd never heard of before and creatures I could only imagine in my head instead of seeing pictures of them.

Despite how childish it may sound, I still love fairy tales of every kind. Because of my past, Dad never read stories to me, so I'd always dream up my own fairy tales and tried to remember the ones Mom used to tell me.

Nami and I went back into the room we all slept in with three big books in her hands and I came back with the big book full of the fairy tales.

When we walked in, Luffy was awake and everyone was back except Zoro. Even Vivi was there!

I dropped my book on the floor gave Luffy a big hug. "You're alright, Luffy-san!"

He laughed and said, "Yep!"

I went back to pick up my book and sat down on the bed next to Luffy's.

That's when Zoro came back inside. Chopper started yelling at him, telling him it wasn't ok to train with his injuries.

Igaram's wife came in and said that dinner would be in thirty minutes. For his wife, she looked very similar to him… It was kinda creepy.

When dinner was ready, there was a huge banquet with more food than I'd ever seen in my life.

Luffy ran straight to his chair to start eating right away. If his cheeks weren't rubber, they would've probably exploded!

Even though I rarely ate more than half a plate in one sitting, I had almost three helpings of food because it was all so delicious.

Everyone yelled at Luffy when he stole their food, but I protected mine with my on point timing skills.

It seemed like none of the men expect Sanji had manners, and everyone else was stuffing their faces. All of the girls (i.e. Nami, Vivi and I) were very polite and mannered. Even Lashes and Karoo joined in on the banquet.

In the middle of the table, Chopper put chopsticks in his nose and rested the other end in his mouth and Usopp started balancing plates on his nose. We all were laughing hysterically by the end of dinner.

* * *

><p>When the evening started to get dark, Vivi suggested that we (the girls) take a bath in the Royal Bathhouse.<p>

We all walked inside. Nami's and my jaws dropped to the floor. It was probably the biggest bath I'd ever seen. It was like there was a hot pool in the middle of the room. It had a fountain with golden statues on it and everything fancy you could ever think of!

Everything was so relaxing. I was soaking in the giant bath when the guys decide to look in…

I stopped time before they even had a chance and found my towel. Nami did something I don't even want to mention, but it made them stop looking.

We all got in the tub again and chatted normally.

"We're thinking of leaving tonight," Nami said.

"We are?" I asked.

"Yep," she said. "I mean, there's really no reason to stay. Our captain is awake; the Marines are probably waiting for us in the harbor. Our ship's in danger."

"Not _Merry_…" I said.

Vivi didn't say much after that.

* * *

><p>Nami broke the news to everyone that night.<p>

"We're leaving?" Chopper asked.

"I think we should too," Zoro said. "No reason to stick around here any longer."

"Luffy, you decide," Usopp said.

"Ok," he said. "We'll leave after one more Alabasta banquet!"

Zoro hit him on the head and said, "We're leaving now, numbskull!"

A guard came in with a transponder snail and said that it was for us from someone named Bon-chan.

"Bon-chan?" Nami asked. "We don't know anyone like that…"

"He claims to be your friend…" said the guard.

Sanji picked it up.

A familiar voice rang through our ears. "Hello, hello?"

It was Mr. 2, Bon Clay.

"It's me! It. Is. Me!" he said.

Sanji hung up, but it kept ringing. Luffy stretched his arms and grabbed the transponder snail.

"Oh, it's you," he said. "What do you want with us?"

"Straw-chan!" he said. "You're sooo strong~ I was soooo surprised~ Oh, yes. Don't go calling me Mr. 2. If the Marines get wind of this conversation, I'll be in super big trouble!"

"Get to the point," Zoro said curtly.

"I took your ship," he said.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" everyone else yelled in ire.

"Asshole!" Usopp yelled. "Where are you?!"

"I'm on your boat!" he said.

"Of all the annoying bastards in the world…" Sanji said.

"You got it wrong," he said. "Aren't you and I friends?"

A little while later, we had a tough decision to make. Well, by that I mean Luffy did.

Usopp was furious that Bon Clay took our beloved _Merry_, and claimed to be on the Sandora River, waiting for us.

"Let's get moving then…" Zoro said.

"Yeah, if the ship is taken, we gotta-" Luffy said.

"Hey, everyone," Vivi said, interrupting him.

We all looked to Vivi.

"What… What should I do…?" she asked.

We left that night for the ship. Vivi looked sad as we said goodbye.

I hugged her and said, "You're a great princess, Vivi-san. I hope we'll see you again!"

She'd lent us the Super Sonic Duck Squad to get back to where _Merry_ was docked on the Sandora River.

Nami looked depressed as we rode on. Then she said she was willing to give up the one billion Berries for Vivi.

We'd made an agreement with Vivi. If she wanted to join our crew, she was completely welcome too. We were giving her twelve hours to think it through. At exactly noon the next day, we'd be waiting in the east harbor for her if she wanted to come.

Sure enough, Bon Clay was waiting for us early in the morning at the Sandora River on our ship.

We said goodbye the Super Sonic Duck Squad and they took off back in the direction of the palace.

I was very sleepy by the time we got to the ship. Sanji carried me to our room because I had almost fallen asleep while standing up.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	20. Goodbye Alabasta, Hello Robin!

I woke to the sound of multiple cannons firing about four hours later. I scrambled out of bed and threw on my clothes and went out on deck. Luffy was yelling at Marines not to fire at us.

"Ah, look who's awake," Nami said. I started apologizing profusely, but she just walked away and said don't worry about it.

I wondered what time it was.

I ran up the rope ladder and into the crow's nest to look at the position of the sun. It wasn't noon yet.

_Whew!_ I thought.

More cannon balls came barreling towards our ship.

_Oh, crap! I have a job to do!_

"Cannon balls coming towards our port!" I yelled. "Iron spears coming towards the bottom of the ship on all sides!"

"We're gonna sink if they keep this up!" Sanji said.

I braced for impact as no one did anything to stop the bombardment.

"We're surrounded!" I said, looking all around, counting the navy ships. "About eight ships in total! More spears coming!"

"I can't patch all of these holes!" Chopper yelled from below deck.

"Hurry up and do something!" Nami yelled at the three strongest men.

"We can only protect one side at a time!" Sanji said.

"I can help," I said. "I think…"

As the spears came closer, I yelled as I focused on all eight of them, "Tick Stop!"

The spears stopped before they hit the ship.

"Someone knock them away," I said. "I'll hold them."

Sanji was on it and kicked them away from the ship.

Usopp was working feverishly at aiming the cannon on the deck and fired, hitting on of the ships.

"One ship's down!" I called out, seeing it slowly sink into the water. It fell onto the ship next to it. "Two, actually! Nice one, Usopp-san!"

"Uh… Um… Just as I calculated!" he said. "You can rely on me!"

"Full speed in that direction!" Bon Clay said.

"BON-CHAN!" said the watchman on his ship. "PROBLEM! It's Black Cage!"

Judging from Bon Clay's reaction, that must not've been good.

"What's that?" Luffy asked.

"Black Cage Hina!" he said. "The Marine Headquarters Captain who patrols this area of the sea!"

"I've heard of her…" I said. "She's never let anyone escape, apparently."

"We gotta get out of here super quick!" Bon Clay said. "If we exit to the south, we can escape with minimum damage."

"If you want to go, go," Luffy said. "We have to stay here."

"We made a promise we have to keep," Nami said. "We have to continue for our friend."

Bon Clay got up on the railing of the Merry to make a speech about friendship. Bon Clay decided that his crew would disguise their selves as us and be a decoy so that we could actually escape.

I was touched by his bravery, despite him being our former enemy, and current friend.

I crouched down in the crow's nest so they'd think we actually went on the other ship.

"Full speed ahead!" Nami said when the coast was clear. Our little ship sped off towards the east harbor without the Marines noticing us.

After a couple minutes, I stood back up and saw that two ships were chasing after us, but there were too far away to hit us.

We all watched as our friend, Bon Clay, and their ship were sunk.

_He truly is a good man at heart…_

"Bon-chan!" Luffy said, watching the ship go into the ocean. "We'll never forget you guys!"

The Marine ships eventually caught up with us, tried to board us, but were unsuccessful. Usopp sunk even more ships with his on point aiming sniping skills.

I eventually had to climb down the rope ladder to help out everyone.

When it was all over, I heard Vivi's voice from the closest city. A speech was being broadcasted through the whole country. Vivi was talking about our journey together, but disguised her words so that only we'd know what she was talking about.

"She's not coming, then?" I asked.

"Yeah," Sanji said. "She's not coming. It's past noon, so we should go."

"She has to be here!" Luffy said, determined.

I climbed back up the rope ladder and looked out with my telescope to the shore, trying to see if she was coming.

I didn't see anyone.

"Oi! The Marines are coming again!" Usopp yelled.

"How many damn ships do they even have?!" Zoro yelled. "We gotta go!"

That's when I heard her voice.

"EVERYONE!" she yelled to us.

I looked around and saw Karoo and Vivi on the coast. They were both waving to us. I climbed back down the rope ladder and sat on under the railing, letting my feet go in between the pegs.

"See!" Luffy said. "She's here!"

"Turn the ship around!" Usopp said.

"I'm here to say goodbye!" she yelled to us.

"What…?" I said.

"I can't go with you. Thank you for everything!" she called to us. "I want to have more adventures, but I can't because I love my country! That's why I can't come with you!"

"I see!" Luffy said, smiling.

"I'll stay here…" she said. It sounded like she was crying now. "But if we meet again… Huff-huff… Will you still call me your friend?!"

Nami slapped Luffy to the ground before he could say anything.

"Don't answer!" she said urgently. "The Marines have seen Vivi already. If they think we're friends with her, then she'll become a criminal. Just make this a silent farewell."

"But we have to say something!" I said. "She's crying!"

"No," Nami said. "We can't."

I got up from the ground and tugged on Luffy's sleeve. "Luffy-san… Can't we say goodbye…?"

"Yeah," he said. He lifted the sleeve of his left arm and took off the bandage that covered the X we all had. He held up his hand.

I smiled giddily and laughed. I did the same. Soon everyone had their left hand in the air.

That was our goodbye to her. That was her proof we'd still be friends till the end.

The Marines tried to hit our ship, but no one moved as the cannon balls splashed around us.

"SET SAIL!" Luffy yelled.

* * *

><p>The Marines continued after us without hesitation.<p>

"Oi! Maggie!" Luffy called up to me.

I looked over the railing from the crow's nest to my captain. "Yes, sir?"

"Can you go help Usopp and Chopper below deck?" he asked.

"Of course!" I said, saluting him.

I rushed down the rope ladder and climbed the ladder down to the lower deck. I stepped in shin-deep water.

"Luffy-san sent me here to help!" I said.

"Oh great!" Usopp said. "Can you do the time-stop thing so the water doesn't get in?"

"Of course!" I said, saluting him. "Tick-Tock Extend: Usopp and Chopper!"

The water stopped rushing in as time was stopped.

"That's a big help!" he said. "How long can you hold it?"

"I don't really know…" I said. "I've only tried it once before."

"Ok," he said. "Chopper! Work fast!"

"Ok!" Chopper agreed.

We all worked diligently as the time was frozen. I handed Usopp and Chopper boards and nails while they hammered them into place. When everyone was finished, I looked at my watch before I started time again and nearly screamed, partially in surprise, horror, and excitement.

"That can't be right…" I said.

"What?" Usopp asked. "Something wrong."

"It's been fifteen minutes…" I said. "That _cannot_ be right! I can't stop it for that long!"

"Fifteen minutes?" Chopper asked. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure it's been about that long."

"Really?" I asked. They both nodded. "Oh, no… I'm gonna be, like, dead after this."

"What's that supposed to-?"

I couldn't do it anymore. I collapsed to the floor as time started again.

"Magnolia!" they both yelled. "What's wrong?!"

"I'm f-fine," I said. "J-just go h-help the others."

"Are you sure?" Chopper asked.

I couldn't even lift my finger to give him thumbs up. "Yeah."

The boys had to paddle away from the Marine ships Luffy had sunk with the spears they'd thrown at us.

A couple minutes later, I regained my strength and joined everyone moping on the deck over the loss of our true friend, Vivi.

"What with your faces?" Zoro asked.

"We miss her!" we all said in unison.

"Then quit whining about it!" he yelled. "If you didn't wanna leave her behind, you shoulda just taken her by force!"

"You brute!" Chopper said sadly.

"You suck!" Nami whined.

"Heartless, Zoro-san. Just heartless…" I said.

"Moss head," Sanji jeered.

"Three swords," Luffy tried to mock.

"That's not an insult…" Usopp pointed out.

"Four swords!" he tried again.

"You can't just add a sword…" Usopp said.

I stood back up from the railing of melancholy people, deciding to go back up in the crow's nest.

That's when the door to the kitchen opened and a woman's voice said, "So we finally got away from the island. Well done."

That's when everyone freaked out, seeing who it was.

_Ms. All Sunday is on our ship?! _I thought.

I hid behind Zoro, as did Nami.

"Oh, she's a beautiful lady!" Sanji noticed.

Everyone had their weapons out, me included. But her hands sprouted and knocked them to the floor.

"Don't point dangerous things at me," she said calmly. "I told that to you before, didn't I?"

"How long have you been here?!" Nami asked.

"The entire time," she said.

I picked up my dagger and put it in my bag.

Zoro looked to me and said, "That's how you stowaway, Magnolia."

I stuck my tongue out at him and crossed my arms in annoyance.

"These clothes are yours, aren't they?" She was right. She was wearing Nami's clothes. "I'm borrowing them."

She pulled up a chair and put her hands on the back as she looked at everyone.

"Monkey D. Luffy," she said. "You're forgetting what you did to me, are you?"

Sanji started yelling at Luffy, but he responded he didn't know what he did.

The woman crossed the deck and set the chair down to sit in it. She sat back, crossed her legs and said, "Yes you did. You put me through some very excruciating treatment. Take responsibility."

Sanji was furious at his captain.

"I don't know what you're taking about!" Luffy said in the middle of being thrashed by a furious Sanji.

"Allow me to join your crew," she said.

"HUH?!" we all asked.

"You forced me to live when I wanted to die," she said. "That is your crime. I have no place to go or return to. So, are you going to let me stay on your ship?"

"I get it," he said. "Guess that's that. Okay."

"LUFFY!" everyone yelled.

He smiled ear to ear and said, "Don't worry! She's not a bad person."

* * *

><p>Despite what the captain said, we all had our doubts, except Sanji who was completely on board with the idea of a new crewmate.<p>

Usopp started interrogating her, and I sat next to him while Luffy and Chopper looked at one of the hands she sprouted on the floor with awe.

"My name is Usopp," he said. "What's your full name?"

"Nico Robin," she said.

"What's your occupation?" he asked.

"I'm an archaeologist," she replied.

"What's that?" I asked.

"Someone who studies the past," she said. "Well, that's only a brief explanation."

I nodded in understanding as Usopp jotted notes down on a piece of paper.

"I became an archaeologist, and then I became wanted by the World Government by the age of eight," she continued. "So for the past twenty years, I kept myself hidden from society."

"You were eight?!" I asked.

"Alone the entire time?" Usopp asked.

"Not exactly," she said, looking at me. "A child can't survive on the ocean by herself." She dropped her gaze and looked back at Usopp. "Over the years, I worked for villainous characters as a way of protecting myself and to achieve my goal. And that's the story."

"So Crocodile was just one of those people?" he asked.

"Yes," she said. "In order to locate the Rio Poneglyph. It's given me a lot of experience in covert operations. I'm sure I'd be an asset for your crew."

"You seem pretty confident about yourself," he said, doubting her. "What's your specialty?"

"Assassination."

Usopp said that the interview concluded that she was too dangerous to hire, but I was starting to like her. She seemed nice, minus the assassination part.

"You may have fooled the rest, but you can't fool me," Nami said intimidatingly. "If you try anything funny, I'm kicking you out."

"Oh, that reminds me," she said, bringing out a small sack. "I brought along some of Crocodile's jewels."

That certainly got Nami on her side.

"Nami's down…" Usopp whispered to Zoro.

"That was a dirty trick," Zoro remarked.

"Everything's going her way for now," Usopp said.

Sanji slid down the stair's railing with much grace. He held a small piece of cake in his hand and set it down in front of her. He started reciting poetry.

"Here is your snack," he finally said.

"Oh, thank you," she said politely.

Usopp pulled me away from the table and said, "Stay away from her, Magnolia."

"That stupid Love-Cook was a lost cause from the get-go…" Zoro said. "The three of us are the last remained bastions against her!"

"Woah…" I said. "What?"

"Don't tell me…" Usopp said. "She's gotten to you too?! Oh no! The poor youthful mind of the innocent girl has been tainted with the evil ways of an evil woman. Woah, the unfairness of it all!"

I elbowed him to stop. "I think she's nice," I said.

"Fine," Zoro said. "The two of us are the last remaining bastions against her!"

Usopp 'fell' next when Luffy did an impersonation of Chopper with Robin's hands sticking out from his head.

I'm pretty sure Zoro switched sides when she had a conversation with him.

And that was that. Robin had joined our crew!

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong>

**Forget filler arcs, let's get to Sky Island!**

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	21. The Ship From Above

I was up in the crow's nest on a seemingly normal day, when all of a sudden, it started raining. But it wasn't water that was raining down. No, no.

It was pieces of wood.

"This isn't rain…" Sanji said, looking up. "It sort of looks like-"

A mast fell from the sky into the water with a splash. I looked up to see a huge galleon falling with it.

Thankfully, the ship didn't fall on top of the Merry, but it did increase the turbulence in the water by at least 500%. I hung onto the railing of the crow's nest for dear life as more pieces of wood kept falling.

"Don't let go of the ship!" Zoro yelled to everyone amongst the girlish screams and panic.

"What the heck is happening?!" Nami screamed.

That's when Usopp screamed. "A SKELETON!"

"Don't throw it over here!" Nami yelled.

"There's still stuff coming down!" Sanji said.

When everything stopped and the waves calmed down, I climbed down the rope ladder unscathed.

"Why'd a ship fall from the sky?!" Luffy asked, looking up.

Usopp and Chopper were cowering in the corner looking at the skeleton that had fallen.

"The Grand Line is scary…" they chanted together.

"What the heck?!" Nami exclaimed.

"What happened?" I asked her.

"Something's wrong with the log pose…" she said. "It's pointing up! It must be broken…"

"That's not it," Robin said. "An island with a stronger magnetic field is causing the needle to point towards a new log. And if the needle is pointing up…"

"There's an island in the sky!" I said, excited.

"An island in the sky?!" everyone asked.

"This is so cool!" Luffy said.

"Then the ship and the skeleton fell from there!" Usopp said.

"There's nothing in the sky that looks like an island," Zoro said.

We all looked up. There were only clouds.

"I wouldn't say that," Robin said. "What's floating up there is a sea."

That got everyone's attention. But some were still skeptical (Zoro and Sanji). Luffy was super excited, though. He said we should take to the sky right away. Sanji reminded everyone that pointed the helm towards the sky wouldn't get us there.

"To be honest, I've never seen a sky island," Robin said. "And I don't know much about it."

"Well, obviously it's impossible!" Nami said. "The log pose is probably broken."

"No, Miss Navigator," Robin said. "Don't think of trying to fix it, but how to get into the sky. You shouldn't doubt the log pose no matter what happens. If anything, doubt your common sense. Wherever the needle points, there will be an island."

* * *

><p>Chopper and Nami hid behind the main mast while Robin examined the skeleton that fell from the sky. First, she started putting the skull fragments back together. I sat down next to her as she worked, watching intently. Sanji and Zoro came to watch as well.<p>

"You have some weird hobbies…" Nami mocked.

"Wait, where's Luffy?" Zoro asked. He looked around and saw Usopp and Luffy on the shipwreck. "What are they up too?"

"They said they were going to explore," Chopper said.

And with that, Robin set the completed skull on the ground, saying it was complete.

"The holes here, here, and here," she pointed to them respectively on the skull, "are artificial."

I looked at the holes and said, "They look like bullet holes."

"No, this is the result of medical treatment," she said. "Burr hole surgery, don't you think, Mr. Doctor?"

Chopper nodded and said that they used to drill holes in people's skulls to remove brain tumors. "But that's an archaic practice!"

"Seems a bit extreme…" I said.

"Yes, at least 200 years have passed since he died," she determined. "He was in his early thirties. During his voyage, he collapsed and died from illness. His teeth are in good condition, more so than the other bones. They must've been coated with tar, and that's a strange custom from the South Blue. The ship must've been an exploratory vessel." Robin left briefly to get a book. She opened the pages when she came back and said, "Ah, the Bliss Kingdom from the South Blue. The _St. Bliss_ was a ship sent to explore the Grand Line. It was 208 years ago." She pointed to the picture of the ship.

It really was the same ship that fell from the sky.

"That means that for at least 200 years the ship has been wandering around on the sea in the sky," she said.

I clapped and said, "That's amazing what you can learn from just bones!"

She smiled at me and said, "Thank you. Corpses only have lost their ability to speak. They still contain much information." She looked back to the bones and said, "If it was an exploratory vessel, there must be more evidence and documents on the ship."

"Yeah, but the ship is sinking into the ocean-" Nami said, looking at the sinking ship. "What the hell are you doing?!"

I looked over and saw Luffy drowning and Usopp was freaking out.

When Usopp finally saved the captain, Luffy spit water out from his mouth and sat up.

"Oi, guys!" he said. "I found something great!" He unrolled a piece of old paper, revealing that it was a map.

"It's a map of a sky island!" Usopp said.

The map did say the land was called Skypiea.

"See!" he said, proud of himself.

Nami took the map and stared at it, baffled. "So there really is an island in the sky…"

"Yahoo!" we cheered.

I jumped up and down with glee. "We get to go to the sky! When can we go? Can we go there now?"

"It's still only a possibility," Nami said, raining on everyone's parade. "The world is full of fake maps."

I almost started crying. The idea of an island in the sky seemed magical.

"No, no!" she said, contradicting herself. "It exists! Really."

"Yay!" I said, cheering.

"Listen, Luffy," she said. "I don't know how to get there."

"You're the navigator! Figure it out!" he argued.

"There are things I can and can't do, you know!" she sassed him.

"I don't care!" he said. "We're going to the sky island!"

Nami finally hit him on the head. She sighed and said, "This is getting us nowhere… In any case, we can't possibly continue sailing like this. What we need now is information. If that giant ship was in the sky, then they must've found a way to get there. We need to get on that ship and pull out any documents or records left."

"But's it's in the water…" I said. "How are we supposed to do that?"

"We'll salvage it!" she said.

"What's that?" Chopper and I asked.

"It's a way to bring up ships that have sunk," Robin explained. "But I don't think we can salvage that one. It's too big."

Some weird monkeys showed up when Luffy, Sanji and Zoro tried to salvage the ship. After a couple minutes of anxiously waiting, a giant turtle ate the ship.

Strange things happened after the turtle came.

Night came during the day and huge scary giants appeared before us. The _Going Merry_ rushed out of there as quickly as possible.

Nami yelled at the guys for not getting any treasure when it was all over. It turns out Robin stole an eternal pose from the monkey's ship. It was to a land called Jaya. So that's where we headed.

I went back up in the crow's nest on the lookout for the island called Jaya.

* * *

><p>"Do you still not see it?" Luffy asked.<p>

"I'm sure, Luffy-san," I said looking through my telescope. I angled my bottom lip towards my eye and blew to get my bangs out of my face.

"Yeah, but it isn't that far, right?" Zoro asked.

"The weather's been stable, so I would assume so," Nami said.

"Jaya's a spring island!" Luffy said. "It's nice and warm."

"Spring weather's nice," Chopper said. He looked up into the sky and said, "I bet the seagulls enjoy it, too."

I smiled at the seagulls that flew over my head. That's when they all fell onto the deck, dead. Chopper screamed that they were shot.

"I didn't hear gunfire…" Usopp said.

"There's a bullet!" Chopper said, examining them.

No one believed him.

A couple minutes later, I looked through my telescope at the beckoning of Luffy for the last time and said, "I see it! It's up ahead!"

As we neared the cost, I came down the crow's nest. Everyone could see it at that point. It looked like a nice town, too.

"It kinda looks like a resort!" Usopp said.

"Makes me want to stick around a bit," Nami said.

We were by far the smallest ship docked there. The rest were much bigger and had scary animals at the front were we had _Merry's_ sheep head. I started to have second thoughts about staying.

"I think they're pirate ships," Usopp said.

"When can pirate ships just openly dock at a harbor?" Nami asked.

"Yeah, I guess you're right…" he said.

"But they have Jolly Rogers!" I said, looking at the flags.

We all heard someone screaming from inside the town for their lives.

"Don't kill me! Please don't kill me!" the man screamed.

Nami, Chopper, Usopp and I were all worried about docking at this seemingly un-quaint island.

But of course, Luffy was excited as ever. Both Zoro and Luffy hopped right off the ship as we docked and headed into the town.

"There's no way…" Nami said.

"No way what?" I asked.

"Those two can come back without getting into trouble," she said.

"It looks dangerous enough…" Usopp said. "It's next to impossible."

"You're right," she said. She hopped off the ship and caught up with them.

"She's a goner!" Chopper said.

"Nami will be dearly missed," Usopp said.

_Have a little faith, would you?_ I thought to myself.

"If Nami-san's going-"

Chopper and Usopp rushed to hold Sanji back, saying there'd be no one to protect the ship if he goes.

"I guess I'll prepare some tea and hold down the fort," he said, deciding to stay. "I mean, Magnolia-chan and Robin-chan are still here~"

"Robin just left…" Chopper said.

"Ok, then, just Magnolia-chan-"

"I don't really want any tea right now, Sanji-san," I said. "But thank you!"

"About that tea-" Usopp asked.

"Make it yourself."

* * *

><p>We three, Usopp Chopper and I, sat in the kitchen chatting and waited for everyone to return. Sanji started making lunch for everyone.<p>

I began to get very frustrated because my straight-across bangs kept getting in my eye. Finally I just got a headband to keep them back. But the headband didn't really match what I was wearing so I took it off and just lived with it with an annoyed expression on my face whenever I had to brush them out of my eye.

"I don't know how you do it, Sanji-san…" I said. "I hate it when my bangs get too long…"

"If they're bothering you so much, why don't you just cut your hair?" Chopper asked.

"I only have eye when I'm wearing this," I said, pointing to my eye patch. "I don't want to mess up when I'm down an eye."

"I can cut it for you," Usopp offered.

My eye lit up and I said, "Really, Usopp-san? You'd do that?"

"Yeah, sure," he said. "You know, I was a hairdresser back on my home island. I was the best in the world!"

"That's amazing!" Chopper and I said, impressed.

"Not to brag or anything, but people came from all over the world to have the opportunity for me to cut their hair," he said.

Sanji hit him on the head with a spatula and said, "Don't lie to a lady."

"I'm telling the truth!" he promised.

"Yeah!" Chopper said, backing him up. "Usopp would never lie!"

Sanji rolled his eye and continued cooking.

"I'll show you, Sanji!" Usopp said. "Magnolia's hair is going to look fantastic when I'm finished with it!"

"I just want you to trim my bangs… Nothing drastically different," I said.

"Of course!" he said.

So Usopp got some scissors and with everyone watching intently, he sat down in front of me.

"If you screw this up, you won't have meals for as long as it takes for Magnolia-chan's hair to grow out again," Sanji threatened.

Usopp gulped and I leaned in closer to him. He slowly held the scissors to my bangs. He held a section of my bangs with his hand and scissors in the other. I closed my eyes as he made the first cut. The tiny section of hair fell into the towel on my lap.

Chopper gasped and I opened my eyes. "What?" I asked. "What's wrong?"

"He actually cut it!" Chopper said.

"I'm not done yet!" Usopp said. "Be still so I don't mess up…"

I froze in my chair as he held the next section of my bangs in his hand. He made the next cut and continued until they were even across my forehead and above my eyes.

"Magnolia-chan~" Sanji said. "Your hair looks amazing!"

I smiled and said, "Can I see it?"

Chopper held up a small mirror. My bangs looked much better and they weren't in my eye.

Sanji picked up the towel from my lap and threw away the unwanted hair. Usopp looked very relieved and proud of himself. I hugged him and said thank you a bunch of times.

"My pleasure," he said with pride. "Ask me anytime and I'll be happy to cut your hair again. That includes everyone in the crew as well. I'll have to tell them when they return."

"It really does look great!" Chopper said.

Eventually Usopp and Chopper started fixing up the _Merry_. Sanji said that is was gonna be dangerous if we kept the _Merry_ in such bad shape for a while. I had to admit it, she did look a bit worse for wear, but that just means that she and we had been through a lot together. We'd keep sailing on her until she couldn't possibly sail anymore, which was probably going to be a long time from then.

Not long after, Nami, Luffy, and Zoro returned from the town. Luffy and Zoro looked like they'd gotten beaten up. I wondered what had happened.

"What the hell happened to you two?" Usopp asked.

"Nami-san!" Sanji said. "Are you ok?"

Chopper started screaming for someone to get a doctor. "Oh wait, that's me…"

Chopper treated them both back on the deck while Usopp and I asked what happened.

"How many monsters?" he asked.

"Just a pirate," Luffy said, smiling. "But don't worry, it's all good now."

"Yeah," Zoro said.

Nami looked pretty pissed at them both. "You guys may think so, but I don't," she said vengefully. "You men are supposed to take on whoever wants to fight and beat them up! This whole town should be burned to ashes for pissing me off!"

"Nami-chan…" I said.

"I thought you said we weren't supposed to cause trouble," Zoro said sassily.

She turned around to face him with a horribly angry face on and yelled, "The past is the past! Bring up old details and I'll crush your skull."

Zoro looked a bit frightened.

"Why is she so mad?" Usopp asked. "She wasn't even hurt…"

"Dunno," Luffy said nonchalantly.

"Well did you find out anything about the sky island?" I asked.

Nami turned her head towards me with weird jerks and had a murderous aura about her as she said darkly, "Sky island? I don't care about that place anymore. Just _mentioning_ that place made the whole bar laugh at me! WAS IT _THAT_ FUNNY?! What the hell…"

Chopper was so scared he went into Guard Point and looked like a giant bush. Usopp even shot a Ketchup Star on the ground and pretended to be dead.

Nami was completely furious and we were all very afraid of encountering her wrath.

That's when Robin came back.

"Things certainly are lively here," she said. "What's all the excitement about?"

"Welcome back, Robin-chan~" Sanji said passionately.

"What's up?" Luffy asked. "Did you go somewhere?"

"Yes," she said. "I got some clothes, provisions, and information about the sky island."

"That's right!" Nami yelled. "You're the one to blame, Robin! You told us about the sky island! If it doesn't exist, I swear to god I'm throwing you overboard!"

I walked up to Robin and whispered, "Nami's really mad about something. You might want to avoid her for a bit."

Robin smiled at me and said, "I'll keep that in mind." As she walked the doorway to the room that lead to the lower deck, she handed Luffy a map with her many hands that appeared up the railing. "Here you go, Captain."

"Ooh! A treasure map!" he said. "Where is it?"

"This island," she said. "The town on the left is where we are, Mock Town. And on the opposite side, there's an _X_. Apparently an outcast of Jaya is living there and his name is Montblanc Cricket. He was chased out of this town for speaking about dreams."

Robin went into the room and closed the door behind her.

Luffy looked at the map and smiled, saying "Let's check it out!"

We ended up having a short run in with the brother of the salvaging monkey we saw earlier when we set sail to look for the man named Cricket, but nothing of interest happened until we got there.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	22. Thoughts of the Sky

"AWESOME!" Usopp and Luffy remarked at the man's home. "Is that his house?!"

I was climbing down from the crow's nest just staring at the enormous palace. I almost missed a foot hold on the rope ladder and fell, but I caught myself just in time, thankfully.

"Take a closer look," Zoro said.

"A man who dreams, huh?" Sanji said. "More like a big show-off."

Luffy jumped off the ship and said, "It's just a board!"

I frowned, displeased by the false exterior of the place. _It's not nice to lie…_ I thought.

The board was supported by two poles which propped it up against half of a house.

"Why was he kicked out of town for dreaming?" Nami asked.

"I don't know the details, but," Robin said, "apparently he claimed that a mountain of gold resides somewhere on Jaya Island."

"Really?!" Nami said, suddenly turning happy at the mention of potential wealth. "Treasure?"

"Who knows?" Robin said mysteriously.

Luffy just walked into the house without knocking or anything. Nami was ordering Chopper to dig in the ground as everyone got off the ship.

I noticed there was a book on a table outside. The title read _Noland the Liar_.

"What's that?" Nami asked, seeing it too.

"A book," I replied.

She picked it up and said, "It's an old picture book called _Noland the Liar_."

Usopp praised the man.

Sanji overheard us and came over. "Noland the Liar?" he asked.

"Have you heard of it?" I asked.

Nami opened the book and said it was published in the North Blue.

"I was born in the North Blue," he said. "Didn't I tell you guys?"

"Really?" Usopp asked. "I thought you were from East like the rest of us."

"That's where I grew up," he said. "It's a pretty well-known story in the North. It's just a fairy tale for kids now, but I heard this guy Noland was a real person."

"It's a fairy tale?" I asked, getting excited. "What's it about?"

Nami started reading the book aloud to us. Apparently, the man was an explorer who told people about his adventures, but they were so amazing, they sounded like lies. Then one day, he reported to the king that there was a huge amount of gold on an island he went too. But when they got there, there was no gold. Noland was sentenced to death for lying.

Splash!

We all looked over to the water to see that our captain had fallen into the sea.

That's when a man popped out of the water and asked why we were here in his home.

Sanji ran towards the man, telling Usopp to get Luffy.

"You're after the gold?" the man asked. "Then die!"

Sanji starting swinging his legs, trying to kick the man. But then, he pulled out a gun and tried to shoot Sanji.

"Tick Tock!" I yelled, stopping the bullets in midair.

That's when Zoro joined the fight, but as he was charging for the two fighting, the man keeled over in pain and dropped his gun.

I accidently let the bullets fly again and Sanji dodged all of them.

"Sorry!" I said, running over to the three of them.

Usopp and Luffy sprung up from the sea and onto the shore.

"What the hell were you doing?" Usopp asked.

Luffy gasped for air and said, "Bubbles were… coming up from the sea! But then a chestnut appeared! But the chestnut was actually an old man. And then he pulled me into the water!"

I helped both of them up as Chopper looked over the man with his medical knowledge.

We all brought him into his house and Chopper diagnosed him with decompression sickness.

"Is this old guy sick?" Luffy asked.

"It's an ailment that affects some divers," Chopper replied. "It's not permanent, but…" He went on to explain how dangerous it could be if the man continued diving and coming up to the surface quickly. "If he continues… it could lead to death."

And that's when the two monkeys rushed into the room, asking if the man was alright. The ones we'd met while salvaging and after we set sail for this man's home.

None of us knew what to make of the situation at first.

Usopp and Chopper started screaming and running in circles, thinking they were here to kill us. I just stared at the two, wondering how they knew the man in the first place.

"What the hell are you doing here?!" asked one of the monkeys.

"What did you do to our friend?!" the other asked.

"What are you talking about?" Luffy asked. "We're taking far of the old guy. Get lost."

They started crying and said together, "You're so kind…"

* * *

><p>"You live here too?" Luffy asked as they started chatting outside the house.<p>

"Well, this place is our base, but we usually sleep on our ships," one of them explained.

"Yeah, we're too big for the house," the other said.

I was sitting by Zoro and Usopp outside listening to their conversation.

"How can those guys become friends so quickly?" Usopp asked, a little ticked off.

"They must have a lot in common," Zoro said.

I laughed and said, "Well, Luffy-san's name is Monkey D. Luffy!"

Zoro chuckled as Usopp and I laughed really hard.

But Chopper interrupted us, rushing outside saying that the man had woken up.

I sprung up from the ground, excited to see if the man was ok.

"Old guy!" Luffy said, walking in right after me. "We got something to ask you."

The man lit a cigarette and put it in his mouth. As he blew out smoke, he said, "Sorry for the trouble. I thought you were after my gold like the other idiots."

"You have gold?!" Nami asked.

"Stop," Usopp said to her.

"So what'd you wanna ask me?" the man asked.

Luffy came around to face the man. A couple of us had to move out of the way because the house was very small.

"Old guy, we want to go to a sky island!" he said. "Tell us how to get there!"

"Sky island?" the man asked. He started laughing. "You guys believe in a sky island?" he asked, still laughing heartily.

I frowned at the man. _Maybe he thinks it isn't real, too._

Nami almost punched the man right there, but Usopp held her back with all his might.

"You mean there's no sky island?!" Luffy asked.

"Who knows?" he said, putting the cigarette back in his mouth. "I know one guy who said it existed, but… he's famous for being a great liar. And his family has been a laughing stock ever since."

Luffy looked at Usopp who yelled that it wasn't him.

"It's an old story that everyone in North Blue has heard," he continued. "_Noland the Liar_."

"Oh yeah," Sanji said. "Now you mention it, I remember his full name was Montblanc Noland.

"Are you his descendant?" Nami asked. "Is this place the setting for that story?"

"He's my grandfather's grandfather's grandfather or something," the man said. "He's caused a lot of problems for me. The public still makes fun of us today, but no one in our family hates him."

It didn't make sense to me why a story about an island in the Grand Line would be so popular in the North Blue.

"Why?" Chopper asked.

"Because Noland was the rarest of things… An honest man," he said.

"But the book…" I said.

"In that book, Noland's last words are 'the mountain of gold must have sunk into the ocean'. They drew him with the grin of an idiot in the picture, but he died in regret with tears streaming down his face."

"That's so mean," I said.

"The island they landed on was indeed Jaya, the same island where Noland first discovered the City of Gold," he said. "So I can't accept that it was just an illusion."

"So that's why you're searching the ocean floor! For the City of Gold! You want to clear the family name!" Usopp deducted.

"Don't say that!" he yelled at Usopp, firing a gun in his direction.

Usopp looked completely terrified when the smoke disappeared, leaving a hole in the wall just above his head.

"Whether or not my distant ancestor was an honest man… I don't care. It has nothing to do with me!" he said firmly. "Do you know what it's like for a kid to be jeered at by everyone just because he has the blood of an idiot in his veins?! I had to grow up with that!"

No one said anything.

I began to feel very sorry for him. _If only the picture book was never made… Maybe none of those awful things would've happened to him._

"Throughout the past 400 years, members of our family have come to try and restore our honor," he said. "But none have found it yet. I was so ashamed of my family that I ran away to become a pirate."

"You're a pirate?" Luffy asked.

The man looked out the window of his home to see the ocean. "It's not like I wanted to be one. I just wanted to be free of Noland's curse. But ten years ago, my ship landed here. There was nowhere else to run. If it doesn't exist, that's fine. If it does, that's fine too. This isn't about proving his innocence. This is a battle with the man who ruined my life."

Usopp was crying from the man's tale of woe.

Luffy asked why the two monkeys were here.

"They're fans of the book," he said simply. He explained how they met.

I thought it was rather amusing how they cared so much for the man but met on such light circumstances.

"Well, enough about the monkeys…" Luffy said. "We want to go to a sky island, old guy!"

"The only testimony about a sky island is from Noland the Liar," he said.

"He went there too?" Luffy asked.

_So it does exist! I knew it!_ I thought, smiling hugely.

"He never wrote anything about going there…" he said, taking a book from off the shelf and paging through it.

"Is that the ship's log?" Nami asked.

The man nodded and threw it to her. "Read the last part."

She nodded and looked at the book. She read off and everyone got very excited. He really did mention the sky islands! Apparently they had a bunch of cool technology and even flying fish!

"A sea in the sky!" Nami said, excited.

"Just like Robin-san said!" I cheered.

"It really does exist!" Chopper said happily.

And with thoughts of islands and seas above our heads, we were all set in trying to get to the islands in the sky.

* * *

><p>Cricket told us everything he knew about the sky islands and how to get there. Even though most of it was theories, it sounded possible. But very dangerous.<p>

I didn't get most of the science behind what he was saying, but it was something like this…

A very big and dense cloud passes around and not even sunlight can go through it. That was what created night in the middle of the day when the huge monsters appeared. There was also a really big current that could shoot ships up into the sky. So basically, if we wanted to get to the sky islands, we'd have to ride the Knock-Up Stream while one of the big clouds was over head or else we'd fall and crash into the sea.

Usopp was so against going to the islands in the sky after he heard the only way to get there was to be blown into the sky.

Cricket even said the _Going Merry_ could never withstand the current in her condition, but he promised that he and the monkeys would fix her so she'd be fine.

"Leave it to us!" they said.

Nami also pointed out that we couldn't stay on the island for more than one more day or the log would readapt to this islands magnetic field.

So basically, we had all the odds stacked against us getting to the sky islands but I was still very excited and itching to go.

"The next Knock-Up Stream is tomorrow after noon. So if you don't want to go, then don't," Cricket said.

Usopp called Cricket a liar. I mean, I guess it did all seem too good to be true and we'd only just met the man, but it was still mean to call someone a liar. I knew that Cricket was a good guy at heart and he really did want to help us.

That's when Sanji called for dinner. Luffy started running for the house.

"No!" I said. From the looks of it, I was farthest away from the house and Luffy was already about to enter. "Tick Tock!" I said quickly, stopping time.

I ran into the house and sat down at the table, getting food on my plate before Luffy could enter and then said, "Un Tock," starting time again.

Sanji laughed when he saw me suddenly appear at the table with food on my plate. "Luffy, huh?" he asked.

I laughed awkwardly and said, "I was going to be the last one in, so…"

"It's all right, Magnolia-chan~" he said. "Even if you were last, I made extra for the ladies!"

"Thank you, Sanji-san," I said as everyone walked in.

Even Robin joined us. She sat next to me and Nami as we watched all the guys go completely crazy during the dinner party.

Cricket told us stories about Noland's adventures in Jaya and about the great golden bell that they heard and were transfixed by. Also the weird birds they encountered.

Cricket even brought out three small golden bells that he'd found while diving.

"But it doesn't prove a City of Gold was there," said one of the monkeys.

"But it does prove a civilization was here," Robin interjected.

"Right, and the call of that strange bird…" he said. He uncovered another small gold statue of a very outlandish bird. "This is a Southbird and it lives right here on this island."

"And it has a weird call?" Luffy asked.

"Yeah," he said. "They're used to-"

All of a sudden he went silent, like he'd forgotten something extremely important.

"Crap!" Cricket and the monkeys all exclaimed together.

"What?" Luffy asked. "What happened?!"

"You guys have to get to the forest in the south!" he said frantically. "You gotta capture one of these birds right now!"

"Why?" Usopp asked.

"You guys are going to sail into the Knock-Up Stream tomorrow. It's directly south of this cape. So how are you going to get there?!"

"Oh, I see. It's not an island we're sailing to, it's a part of the water," Nami said. "Then how do we know which direction is which if the log won't help?"

"You make use of this bird's special trait," Cricket explained. "It has a very accurate internal sense of direction. The Southbird always faces its head towards the south. Without it, you'll never be able to set out from here. You'll miss your one chance to go to the sky islands!"

"WHY ARE YOU TELLING US THIS NOW?!" Luffy yelled as we all tried to scramble out the door.

He tossed us three nets and it was the middle of the night. How were we supposed to catch a bird with only a net in the middle of the night?! And on top of that, we had to be back by morning in order to make it to the Knock-Up Stream in time.

Usopp and I were kinda scared of the forest, but everyone else was fine.

"Well, we only have three nets, so let's split up in three groups," Sanji said.

"Ok," we all said.

Luffy and Chopper went with each other. Nami and Usopp went with Sanji. So Zoro, Robin and I went together.

We walked together in the forest so I tried not to be the last one, but they had longer legs and so obviously they walked faster than me. The dark forest was very creepy for me at least. Zoro and Robin didn't seem to be fazed a bit.

All of a sudden, someone dropped on me and I nearly jumped out of my skin in terror.

But Zoro killed it as soon as I could scream.

"A centipede," he said, picking it up by one of the antenna. "It's freaking huge."

He was right; it was probably bigger than me.

"You really shouldn't go around killing everything we come across," Robin said. "Poor thing."

"But it dropped on me!" I said.

"Yeah, it's his fault," Zoro said.

Robin sighed.

All of a sudden we heard a really weird call. It must've been the bird. Robin, Zoro and I started walking in the direction of the call.

Zoro fell into quicksand, but Robin got him out quickly with all of her hands.

Pretty soon we were attack by an army of oversized crickets. Zoro dealt with all of them.

But we kept hearing the call of the bird!

"We can hear it, but we can't see it," Robin said.

"Maybe it's taunting us," I said.

* * *

><p>When we all met up back at the entrance to the forest, no one had caught the bird.<p>

We were all really disappointed, but one flew into a tree and started taunting us.

I scowled at the bird and whispered, "Tick Tock."

During the stopped time, I grabbed a net out of Zoro's hand and caught it.

"Un Tock," I said, starting time again.

"Maggie!" Luffy said. "You got it! Sweet! Nice work!"

I smiled and handed the net to Luffy as we all walked back to Cricket's house.

I got many 'good job's and things like from my friends. But Robin just smiled at me and didn't say anything.

It was an awful sight when we got back. One of the monkeys was in the water and badly bruised. The other had a huge but on his back. Cricket was beaten to the ground and blood. Cricket's house had a gaping hole in it. And the _Merry's_ head had fallen off.

"What the hell happened?" Nami asked, seeing the carnage.

Sanji retrieved the monkey in the water and asked for help getting him on land.

Usopp nearly fainted when he saw _Merry's_ head on the ground.

"Sorry…" Cricket struggled to say. Luffy and I rushed over to see if he was ok. "I'm really sorry… We couldn't do anything. But there's still time!" He tried to sit up. "We can still strengthen your ship…!"

"Wait, old guy!" Luffy said, trying to get him to rest. "First, tell us what happened."

"It's nothing," he replied. "Don't worry about it."

"It obviously is something to worry about if whoever did this put you all in this state!" I said, touching his arm.

"No, it really doesn't matter," he said. "Did you get the-" He looked up to see Zoro holding the Southbird upside down by the feet. He smiled and said, "That's a relief…"

Nami then informed us that all the gold was stolen.

"It doesn't matter," Cricket said. "Just forget it."

Usopp got really mad at him and told him that it really did matter.

Cricket shot back that it was his problem and not ours. He was determined to make this situation smaller than it was. He didn't want us to worry. He said he was going to get us to the sky no matter what.

That's when Zoro noticed someone painted their Jolly Roger on a piece of wood in the house.

"Bellamy's mark?" Nami said, recognizing it.

Luffy looked really serious as he stood up and straightened his hat.

"Need a hand?" Zoro asked.

"No, I'll be fine," Luffy said.

"Don't do anything stupid, Luffy!" Nami said. "There's only three hours left until we set sail!"

He did listen to her. "If I follow the coast, will I reach that town from this afternoon?" he asked.

"Yes," Robin said.

Luffy started walking towards the town. Cricket tried to stop him, but Luffy had made up his mind. He was going whether anyone liked it or not.

"I'll be back by dawn," he said.

"You have three hours," Nami said. "If you delay us, we'll leave without you."

He walked off into the night.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	23. We didn't die?

Once the monkeys could stand, they immediately started working on the _Merry_ with Usopp in charge of Zoro, Sanji, and Chopper. Both of their pirate crews helped out too. Nami, Robin and I watched as the boys pounded nails into wood and sheets of metal.

As the sun started to rise into the sky, we wondered if Luffy would really make it back in time.

Thirty minutes later, he still wasn't back.

We all waited patiently for him to come running back. And kept waiting. And still more waiting.

Finally, I had to ask.

"Nami-chan, is Luffy-san gonna make it here in time?" I asked.

She sighed and said, "He promised to be back forty-six minutes ago! We're gonna miss the current."

"Maybe the gold is slowing him down," I said. "Should I go look for him?"

Just as I said this, a loud yell was heard from down the coast. It was Luffy! He'd returned with the gold, as promised. Albeit forty-six minutes late…

"He made it!" Sanji said, seeing him down the coast. "Hurry up! We need to set sail!"

"Guys!" he said, holding up a beetle as he ran nearer and nearer to us. "IT's Hercules! It took me forever to find one!"

We were all shocked that a beetle was the only thing keeping us from potentially missing the Knock-Up Stream and the sky islands all together.

_Oh, captain… _I thought facepalming._ Sometimes, you really are kinda stupid._

Luffy stopped to gawk at the newly improved _Merry_! She even had wings now! But I didn't like the concept of a chicken. Chickens don't really fly, so I thought it was kinda a death sentence from the get-go.

"A pigeon would've looked more sky worthy than a chicken," Zoro noted.

"Ok, let's get this ship moving!" Usopp said excitedly. "You guys ready?"

"Yeah!" I said.

We all boarded the ship as Luffy returned the stolen gold to Cricket.

Nami said I didn't have to go into the crow's nest since I wasn't looking out for an island this time.

I was so excited to get the chance to go into the sky with everyone. Even if we could potentially fall to our deaths trying, it seemed like it was going to be a really fun experience.

"Luffy, hurry!" Usopp yelled.

"Right," he said, stretching his arms to get on the ship. As he propelled forward, I moved out of the way so he wouldn't accidently overshoot and knock me over.

Zoro wasn't so lucky.

"Ok, guys, let's get going," Nami said.

Luffy pulled up our anchor and we were off. It felt weird not being in the crow's nest while we set sail. I got to see a whole new perspective instead of one from above. This time, I was right in the action.

We all said goodbye to Cricket and sailed into deeper waters with the monkey's ships by our side.

A couple minutes after we launched from the shore, the monkeys starting telling us the plan.

"Listen! It's now seven AM," one of them said. "We'll probably arrive at our destination around eleven AM. Like Cricket-san said, the location of the Knock-Up Stream is different every time. We need to get there before it happens and determine its exact location!"

Even though the man was talking and we could hear him, I wasn't paying attention. Luffy and I were playing with the Southbird chain to the railing.

"Look at this!" he said.

He put his hands on the bird's beak and moved it so it was pointing a different way. As soon as Luffy took his hands off, the bird's head toggled back into its original southern direction.

Luffy and I laughed as Usopp and Chopper made their way over to watch.

"That's one strange bird," Usopp said.

"He really can't face any way but south!" Luffy continued laughing. "He's like a compass!"

The bird squawked in defiance. Chopper translated for us, "'I'll look some other way than south and throw you jerks off course!'"

"I dare you!" Luffy said, still laughing.

The bird looked like he was scowling and moved his head in the opposite direction. It began to look a little uncomfortable. Eventually, it turned its head back to south.

"What's his name?" I asked Chopper.

The bird squawked at me. Chopper said, "'I'm not telling you, filthy human!'"

I tilted my head to the side and said, "Aw. Why not? I'm not being mean to you, am I?"

It just stared at me for a while and made a little sound of defiance.

"I don't think he wants to tell you," Chopper said.

I hesitantly sat on the railing next to the bird, careful as to not lose my balance and patted the bird's head.

"See? I'm nice," I said.

"Forget it, Magnolia," Usopp said, sighing. "He obviously wants nothing to do with us."

Usopp and Chopper walked away, seeing that my advances to be friends with the bird weren't working out very well.

"Birds like singing, yeah?" I asked it, even though my translator had left.

It closed its eyes, as if ignoring me.

I started humming a little tune and swayed, kicking my feet back in forth from the railing to the rhythm of the song.

The Southbird opened one eye skeptically. As soon as he noticed I was watching him, he shut it again.

Pretty soon the bird started swaying its head, too, but still kept facing south while doing so.

I smiled as I won the bird over with a song. It wasn't so stubborn after all.

"Can I call you something since you refuse to tell me your name?" I asked the bird.

It didn't squawk in protest so I just figured that meant yes.

"Hmm…" I said, trying to think of a suitable name for a bird. "Aha! I got it! Ronnie-kun!"

The bird's eyes opened wide and looked at me with a strange expression.

"What? You said I could call you whatever," I said.

I could've sworn I saw Ronnie roll his eyes.

I petted his head and said, "You're going to have a blast in the sky with us, Ronnie-kun."

* * *

><p>It was around ten when the sky became dark in front of us, one hour ahead of schedule. I was hanging out with Ronnie at the time when panic arose in the atmosphere.<p>

Divers were sent into the water to find the current. I rushed over to the main deck and saw a somewhat scary sight before us.

"Whoa…" I said.

There was a huge dark cloud hanging a couple miles from our position. I started to get a little less excited for the ride up to the sky islands.

We had to endure one of the monkey's awful singing voices for his sonar system to try and find the current.

One of the divers popped up out of the water and yelled that he found the current.

"Head towards ten o'clock!" one of the monkeys yelled, meaning the direction. "That's were the explosion will happen! Find the whirlpool and don't back out!"

The waved started getting more and more of a problem. Up in the crow's nest, it was easy to find a railing to take hold of, but out on the open deck, it kept stumbling and almost fell over a couple times.

Suddenly, the waves got intensely rougher and I bounced off of the deck and landed on my butt near the edge of the ship. I quickly grabbed hold of the railing and held on for dear life, hoping we wouldn't sink. Waves and mist splashed into my face.

"The explosion's about to happen!" the monkey yelled. "Get ready!"

Nami started rattling off science and weather forecasts that all pointed to the same conclusion: We were going to get blow up and into the sky. And if the log pose wasn't broken, there was an island directly above us.

One of the ship's latched on to us and taxied us out to the whirlpool, telling us to go with the flow and try to get as close to the center as we could.

"Oh, dear…" I said, standing up as the waves got a little smoother.

I ran inside the kitchen and stayed away from the furniture in case the explosion caused things to get rattled about.

But as soon as I got in, I remembered Ronnie was still outside.

"Ronnie-kun!" I yelled, seeing him with his claws deep into the railing of the ship. He was still chained to the rail, but I untied him and dragged the chain into the kitchen with me so he wouldn't get hurt when the Knock-Up Stream blew us into the air.

I hugged Ronnie as he struggled to get out of my grasp. He kept trying to get out as I braced for the explosion.

All of a sudden, we stopped moving. The waters were completely calm. "Is it over?" I asked. "Did it not work or something?"

Ronnie squawked as I let go he started panting and perched himself on one of the chairs.

"What's going on?" I asked, going outside the kitchen. "Where's the whirlpool?"

"It… it disappeared…" Usopp said.

"No," Nami said with a scared look on her face. "It's already started… The bottom of the whirlpool was stopped by the sea floor."

"So what does that mean?" I asked, not getting it.

"HOLD IT!" someone yelled not far off. It didn't sound like anyone we knew.

I looked over to see a small raft with four people and a horse riding it. A Jolly Roger was printed on the sail. Whoever it was, they were pirates.

"Oi, Zoro," Luffy said. "Look."

"We've caught up to you, Straw Hat Luffy!" said the man in the center of the raft. He was a rather large man with long, curly black hair and barely any teeth.

"That's the guy from Mock Town!" Nami noticed.

"Who?" Sanji asked.

"I've come for your 100,000,000 Berry head!" the man said. "Give yourself up!"

"My head?" Luffy asked. "Wada mean 100,000,000 Berries?"

"So ya didn't know?" the man asked. He held up a wanted poster of Luffy. It was true; they made his bounty even higher than it already was! He held up another poster of Zoro. "And Pirate Hunter Zoro had a 60,000,000 Berry head!"

_I wonder if mine went up... I mean, they must know I'm with the Straw Hats by now. Captain Smoker has seen me with them._ I thought. _Well, it's not exactly a bounty… It's a reward for turning me into the navy… _I shivered at the thought of someone handing me over. _No, Luffy will protect me if anyone tries to do that. We're friends._

Sanji was very disappointed he didn't get a wanted poster.

"They probably went up because of Alabasta…" Nami said. "But 100,000,000…"

Hearing the word made me think of how much I missed Vivi around.

Luffy and Zoro were smiling with pride at their new bounties.

That's when the ship started slowly going up. I could feel the waves stirring beneath the Merry.

A sudden wave of terror came over me.

_This is really happening! _I thought._ Please let us not die!_

"Everyone brace yourselfers on the ship or get into the cabin!" Sanji ordered.

I started running into the kitchen to be with Ronnie. No one joined me, I guessed everyone wanted to be part of the action, but I preferred safety first.

Our ship continued going up and up and up and up and up…

Until KABOOM!

I was pinned down by the sheer force of the explosion flat on my stomach. I screamed and covered my head, hoping furniture wasn't going to come flying at me.

But that was over soon, I could stand up, except I was standing on the wall instead of the floor. We were completely vertical. How terrifying.

Ronnie's claws dug into my shoulder as he squawked and cawed in fear of the entire situation.

It was the weirdest feeling in the middle of my stomach, like all the contents were floating as I was frozen in place. I began to feel a little sick and hoped I could hold it in until everything was over.

I heard a bunch of screaming and yelling out on the deck, but I couldn't go anywhere. One, I was frozen in terror, and two, there wasn't anything for me to walk on to get to the deck, so I was stuck with Ronnie until it was over.

If we survived, that is.

I waited in terror with Ronnie's claws still clinging for life into my skin, but I didn't even notice.

And as soon as we flattened out again, I fell onto the ground and Ronnie let go. I stumbled a bit trying to get to my feet when all of a sudden, something heavy fell on top of my body and I blacked out right as we landed in the sky.

Bummer, right?

* * *

><p>I woke up a couple minutes later, still with a heavy thing on top of me. Well, it was mostly on my side, but I couldn't even feel it.<p>

_We didn't… die? _I thought.

I tried to get up, not knowing something had fallen on me, but couldn't. That's when I noticed it. The stove had fallen on top of me. How, I had no idea, but it was there.

"H-help…" I struggled to say.

I could hear Nami outside yelling at Luffy for something.

Ronnie started squawking at me. I think he was trying to help, but he didn't do much. He started screeching towards the door, trying to get my friends attention, but they didn't notice me.

"Luffy-san!" I yelled, starting to panic. "Zoro-san! Sanji-san! Help!"

I still don't think they heard me.

The air was thinner, so I knew we landed in the sky. But what that also meant was it was getting increasingly harder for me to breath with a stove crushing me on top of not being accustomed to the altitude.

"L-Luffy-san!" I screaming, fully panicking now.

I could hear an old man talking to the crew. Maybe they couldn't hear me because of that.

"Luffy-san!" I screamed one last time.

I couldn't understand how they couldn't hear me from in the kitchen!

That's when I heard Zoro say, "Did you hear that?"

"Oh yeah… I did," Luffy said.

"Come to think of it…" Usopp said. "Where's Magnolia?"

"Help!" I yelled.

"Maggie!" I heard Luffy say.

The door to the kitchen was burst open. I heard Nami gasp.

"Maggie?! Are you ok?" Luffy asked, while heaving the stove off of me.

A huge breath of air was quite the relief to my lungs.

Luffy held out his hand for me to take. I tried to reach up, but my right arm was filled with severe pain and I flinched back. I tried again with my left, and it didn't hurt at all. So he helped me stand up.

Yet one more gasp was heard from Nami.

"Maggie… chan…" she said.

"What?" I asked.

Everyone was staring at me funny.

"Your arm is… bleeding…" she said.

Chopper made his way through the crowd at the door and his jaw fell to the floor.

"Someone call a doctor!" he yelled. "Oh, wait… That's me!"

I looked at my arm, not knowing what they were talking about.

Instead of my yellow and red striped sleeve, it was all red.

Red from blood.

"Oh, my…" I said, feeling a little grossed out. My knees gave out a little from the shock running through my body.

Luffy came to the rescue, yet again, and picked me up into his arms.

"Set her down over here," Chopper said, getting his backpack of medical supplies ready.

* * *

><p>Apparently, my arm was only bleeding because of Ronnie's claws, but it was broken, too. In two places, that is.<p>

I was told by Chopper, who bandaged my arm up and put it in a sling not to move it very much. Since the joints in the arm were connected, if I moved it even a little, it would aggravate the whole thing.

I personally thought the sling was a bit overkill, but Chopper made it very clear not to take it off.

"That's what you get for staying in the cabin," Zoro said. Everyone was huddling around my bed. Ronnie was at the headboard, head still facing south, but very sullen in appearance. "It was definitely more fun outside than in there."

"That damn bird!" Sanji said, filled with rage. "He'll pay for injuring my little Magnolia-chan!" He was about to kick Ronnie.

"No! Don't hurt Ronnie-kun!" I said, sitting up in bed. Chopper was right. My whole arm squealed at me to stop. I lied back down slowly, careful not to move it.

"YOU NAMED IT?!" everyone asked.

"Well, yeah," I said. "We're friends."

Nami facepalmed and Chopper said even Ronnie felt sorry.

"It's rather unfortunate you have to miss this exciting adventure," Robin said. "We only just got here, too."

"Yeah," Usopp said. "Since you can't get out of bed yet, I'll tell you everything single detail that happens, alright?"

I looked to Chopper with begging eyes. "Please please please please please can I get up if I promise not to move my arm? Please?!"

"Fine…" he said. "But only if you swear you won't!"

"I promise!" I said.

Sanji helped me get up carefully and we all walked back out onto the deck.

Everything was so white! The clouds looked absolutely splendid and fluffy. I wished I could jump into the sea right there, but obviously that wouldn't go well on multiple matters.

"It's so pretty!" I said, gawking at everything.

"Ok, back to business," Nami said. "We're heading to that waterfall over there."

I looked in the direction she was pointing, and sure enough, there was a waterfall made from a mountain of clouds.

As we neared the waterfall, a couple of big clouds blocked our path.

"Stop, stop!" Nami said. "What kind of clouds are those?"

"Well, they can't be part of the sea, since they're floating on top of it…" Sanji said.

"I'll touch one!" Luffy suggested. "Gum Gum Pistol!" His arm went straight for the cloud and bounced off. "Awesome!" he said. He jumped on top of the cloud and started bouncing up and down.

I really wanted to go with him, but obviously that was out of the question at the moment.

Usopp and Chopper joined in.

I scowled, _really_ wanting to jump too.

Robin came up to me and said, "How unfortunate, indeed, Little Watchman. That certainly does look like fun."

"Freaking stove…" I said.

She chuckled and said, "Some of us are just born unlucky."

"You couldn't be more right," I said darkly.

When they came back onto the ship I glared at each of them, extremely bitter I couldn't join.

Zoro noticed my unhappiness and patted my shoulder playfully, but it really hurt. "There's always next time."

"Ow…"

"Oh, sorry," he said, taking his hand off my shoulder.

"It's ok," I said.

"Yeah, Maggie, it's not like we're leaving right away!" Luffy said. "We can come back!"

"Ok!" I said, hoping that day would come sooner rather than later.

Nami navigated through the bouncy clouds and we came across the big waterfall. Underneath was a big gate.

"Oh, hey look over there!" Usopp shouted. "Someone's coming out!"

He was right. There was an old woman coming out of one of the doors inside the gate. She was taking pictures with a camera.

I wondered if she was a tourist.

"Look!" Chopper said. "There're wings on her back!"

She just stared at us for a while before Nami spoke up.

"Um… Excuse us…" she said.

"I am the appointed lookout of Heaven's Fate, Amazon," she said, taking another picture. "Sightseeing or fighting?"

"Sightseeing would be closer, I guess…" Nami replied awkwardly.

"We wanna go to the sky islands!" Luffy said. "There are some on the other side of the gate, right?"

"What do you mean, fighting?" Zoro asked.

"It doesn't matter which," she replied. "Just pay the immigration fee, 1,000,000,000 Extol per person, and be on your way. That's the law."

Nami was definitely not happy about the fee.

"Umm… If… If by some chance…" she began to say, "we didn't pay…?"

"You can pass," Amazon said. "Or you can also not pass. I am neither a guardian nor a warrior; I only listen to your choice."

"Ok, let's go!" Luffy said. "Let's go to the sky islands!"

"We don't have money, but we're going anyway!" Usopp said.

"I see," she said. "Seven of you, I guess?"

"Eight," Luffy corrected.

I wondered who she wasn't counting…

"But how do we get to the sky islands?" he asked.

A huge ship came up from the sea and lifted our ship up. We started speeding off through the gate.

"Hold on tight!" Nami said, grabbing hold of the railing.

I started panicking, wondering how I could stay balanced without moving my dominant arm. Sanji saw me and grabbed me closer to him, who had a firm grip around the mast.

He smiled and gave me a thumbs up.

"Thank you, Sanji-san," I said, relieved.

"Anytime, Magnolia-chan~"

And so we entered the realm of the sky, mostly intact.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	24. Angels in the Sky

We sailed down a highway at full speed. Near the end, there was a sign that said God Land Skypiea. It wasn't an exit, it was an entrance!

We were all so excited to get to see what the sky islands would look like.

The shrimp finally let go of our ship when we saw the island. It looked like it was made out of clouds, like some kind of fairy tale.

Everyone gawked at the sight as we sailed closer to the beach.

"Hey…" Robin said. "That sign said Skypiea. Isn't that the name on the map Luffy found?"

"Yeah!" Nami said. "That galleon that fell on us really did come here!"

Luffy was probably the most excited of all of us. He jumped off the _Merry's_ head as soon as we landed and Usopp followed right after.

"Let's go ashore!" Luffy yelled excitedly.

Nami said she was going to go change as most of us got off. Sanji carried me down because I couldn't climb the rope ladder.

As soon as my feet hit the shallow cloud sea, I shrieked with excitement and ran onto the beach at full speed, completely forgetting my bag that had my dagger and handcuffs in it.

Nami came running out of the ship screaming. Ronnie was pecking her head and started flying away.

"Ronnie-kun!" I called back, seeing him fly away.

As soon as he heard my voice, he began flying in my direction. He cawed at me and perched on my head. I laughed and shooed him off.

"You can be free, Ronnie-kun!" I said.

He squawked in defiance, as if saying he wanted to be with us.

"Oh, don't be silly," I said. "These are sky islands! There must be other birds here. You can be with your own kind."

He looked at me sadly and then flew off towards the island.

"Wow, he really liked you, didn't he?" Usopp said. "Aren't you sad?"

"No," I said. "He'll be fine. He's a good bird."

As I walked onto the shore I sat down where the tide came and struggled to take off my shoes with one hand.

I'd never been swimming in my whole life and now that I had Devil Fruit powers, I'd never be able too. Just sticking my feet in was satisfactory enough. The water was warm and felt good on my feet.

But that's when my arm started hurting. I think the shock was wearing off and the pain was beginning to set in. I grit my teeth and started mentally preparing myself my arm to start hurting.

But that's when Sanji came over saying, "Magnolia-chan~"

"Yes?" I asked. I looked up to see him holding three lovely flowers.

"A beautiful flower for an even more beautiful flower!" he said, bending over to stick one behind my ear.

"Thank you, Sanji-san!" I said. "That's so thoughtful of you!"

"Now for Robin-chan's flower…" he said, getting up to give Robin a flower as well.

I just sat at the shore as the tide kept coming in and getting my feet wet. As I looked over the horizon, a sense of peace swept over me, like I could stay there forever and be content.

A couple minutes later, we all heard someone playing a harp. I stood up, wondering what the sound was and grabbed my shoes.

"Hey, look," Zoro said. "Someone's over there!"

He was right, there was a girl standing on top of a large cloud a couple yards away. She was the one playing the harp.

Everyone stopped to watch her play for a while. When she stopped, she looked over to us and smiled.

"Heso," she said.

_What does that mean?_ I wondered.

"Suu, come," she said.

A little furry animal scurried over from Zoro to its owner, the girl. She hopped off the cloud and walked towards us.

"Are you from the Blue Sea?" she asked.

"Yeah, we came from down there," Luffy said, jumping off a tree. "Do you live here?"

"Yes, I do," she said. "Welcome to Skypiea's Angel Beach."

The girl was very pale and had blonde hair tied into two braids. She had angel wings like the old lady before. The little animal lay down next to her feet and wrapped its bushy tail around its body.

She picked her pet up and said, "I am Conis and this is Suu, a cloud fox."

"She's so cute…" I said.

"Should you need anything, please let me be of service," Conis said kindly.

"Well, there's a lot we'd like to ask you," Nami said, stepping forward. "This place is so mysterious to us."

"Of course," Conis said. "You can ask me anything."

As the two started to chat, I walked back over to the beach and sat down. There was someone coming towards us, but before I could say anything, Zoro pointed it out.

"Oh, that's my father," she said. She waved to him and said, "Heso, Father!"

"What is that?" Nami asked. "That thing he's riding."

He was riding some sort of mini boat, but it didn't have a sail and he wasn't rowing it either. I wondered how I could move without a sail or oars.

"Ah, you mean the waver," she said.

"That's so cool!" Luffy said.

Conis' father pulled up on the shore and stopped his odd machine called a waver rather clumsily.

"Didn't you bring something like that up from the ocean floor?" Nami asked Luffy.

"Yeah, I did," he said.

"Are these your friends, Conis-san?" her dad asked.

"Yes, we just met," she replied. "They came from the Blue Sea."

I got up to greet them.

"That must've been a difficult journey," he remarked. "This is the White-White Sea, I'm sorry."

"No, it's cool…" Usopp said.

"My name is Pagaya. I'm sorry," he said.

_Why is he apologizing?_ I wondered.

"Father, did you catch any fish?" Conis asked.

Nami went over to the waver and inspected it.

"Yes, a good catch," he said. "Oh yes, would you care to stop by my house? I'll treat you to a little of the happiness of the sky."

"Can we?!" Luffy asked, excited. "We'll go! We'll go!"

"Sky island cuisine?" Sanji said, intrigued. "Will you let me help you prepare it?"

"But first, can I ask you something?" Nami asked, still looking at the waver. "This doesn't have a sail to catch wind… How was it riding on the sea?"

"You don't know about dials?" Conis asked.

We all shook our heads.

Conis' father said Luffy could try his waver, but it ended up not going very well.

We all watched to see what would happen to Luffy in the sea. Zoro thought that since this sea was different, maybe people with powers wouldn't sink.

He was proven very wrong when Luffy went under water and didn't surface. Sanji and Zoro both went into the water to retrieve him.

Pagaya profusely apologized for letting a beginner ride his waver. According to him, it took ten years to fully master and control one.

But Nami could ride it almost immediately and Luffy was really jealous. While we went to Pagaya and Conis' house, Nami continued riding the waver.

There was a long flight of stairs to get to the main part of the island. We passed a construction zone where they were cutting a big cloud into blocks to use for building other things.

Their house had a fantastic view of the sea from the living room window. Sanji was in the kitchen with Pagaya while Conis sat with us in the living room. We could even see Nami riding the waver!

I sat down on the couch made out of clouds. I'd never felt something so comfortable in my entire life.

Robin sat next to me and asked, "Will you tell us more about those dials you mentioned."

"Of course," she said. "Let's see… How should I explain?"

I supposed it was probably a weird thing to explain. Since it was something they apparently used so often, it would be like people trying to explain rubber bands to someone who had never seen them before.

But that's when Luffy picked up a seashell called a Tone Dial. She went on to explain that you could record sounds with them and play it back whenever you want.

The mechanism used to propel wavers was a Breath Dial that sucks in wind and releases it.

"There are more, too," Conis said. "Skate types and board types, but the waver is the only one I can handle."

Luffy stared out the window at Nami riding the waver with envy written all over his face. He narrowed his eyes and said, "I wanna ride one like Nami… And we have one too!"

"You have a waver?" she asked.

"Yeah, mostly by accident, though," Usopp said. "We picked up an old beat-up one. But it's 200 years old, so I doubt it would move."

"Well, you never know," Conis said. "As long as the shell of the Breath Dial isn't broken, it can still move."

"Hear that?!" Luffy said, excitedly.

"But you still can't ride it," Usopp reminded him.

"I can wish…" he said somberly.

Zoro was already asleep by the time Conis was fully finished talking about all the different kinds of dials. There were even Lamp Dials and Flame Dials for cooking!

Robin was very interested about the sky island's culture, but before she could ask more questions Sanji came out and told us that dinner was ready.

Right as Sanji walked into the dining room to set all the food he and Pagaya prepared, the pain in my arm started getting worse.

Luffy and Usopp dug in as Chopper and I poked Zoro for him to wake up.

I barely touched the food, but the couple bites I did have tasted delicious. The sky islander really knew how to cook!

It wasn't that I wasn't hungry, I was trying to concentrate on other things besides the ever growing pain in my arm. I kept biting my lip, thinking that creating more pain somewhere else would distract me, but it didn't help much.

That's when Nami went missing. As Sanji was looking out the window, he noticed no one was in the sea.

Conis and her father seemed a bit unsettled.

"What?" Luffy asked, eating a mouthful of lobster. "What's wrong?"

Conis began to explain that there was one place no one must ever, _ever_, set foot on no matter what. "That place is easily accessible with the waver…" she continued.

"Why can't you go there?" I asked.

"It's sacred ground," she said. "We call that place… the land where god resides, Upper Yard."

"God lives there?!" Luffy asked. "In the place you must never, ever set foot on?!"

Conis nodded.

"By _god_… you really mean _the_ god?" Chopper asked nervously.

"Yes," she said. "Because Skypiea is god's land, it is ruled by the almighty God Enel."

I didn't really get the big deal about how god was on the island. I hadn't been exposed to much religion of any kind since my childhood was pretty much nonexistent, so I thought at the time the word god was like a king or some kind of monarch. I even thought that at Little Garden when the giants mention Elbaf.

"God Enel knows everything that goes on in this world," she said.

"Everything?" Luffy asked.

She nodded. "He watches over us always."

"Even now?!" Usopp asked.

"Of course," she said.

I looked around the room, expecting to see a surveillance transponder snail, but nothing was there. _How does he watch over people…? _I wondered.

Zoro scoffed at the mere thought of a god.

"You don't believe in god, Zoro?" Chopper asked.

"I dunno," he said. "I guess I just don't care if he exists or not. But I don't have anything against people who want to believe."

_Why would you have to believe in a leader_? I thought. None of it really made sense at the time.

The chimes in the window hit each other as the wind picked up. Everyone stayed silent, hoping that Nami hadn't gone to Upper Yard.

Well, almost everyone.

"A place we can't ever go, huh?" Luffy said with a glimmer of adventure in his eyes.

"Luffy!" Usopp yelled in defiance. "Listen to what she's saying! 'Must never set foot on' means you _absolutely_ _must not_ go there, Luffy!"

"Is that right?" he asked, not really listening. He smiled mischievously and said, "A place we must never, ever set foot on, huh?"

I facepalmed with my good hand and thought, _Oh dear… This isn't gonna be good._

He started laughing at he looked out the window.

We were all thinking the same thing: _Yep, he's definitely going there._

Upper Yard was all Luffy wanted to talk about when we started eating again. "But, even if you're not allowed to go there, god will still forgive you if you do, right? He's nice, right?"

"Breaking a law that god has created is sacrilege," Conis said.

"What does that mean?" I whispered to Robin.

"It's blasphemy to your religion," she replied.

That's when I got it. It was a light bulb moment. God wasn't a ruler, he was part of a religion.

"Is that so?" he asked. "Oh well. Whatever."

"So what are the consequences of entering this forbidden upper Yard?" Robin asked.

"Well…" she said hesitantly.

"You will not return alive..." Pagaya said.

I gasped and started thinking about how Nami could be out there right now!

Luffy found his excuse to go to Upper Yard. "Let's go there! We'll go find Nami!"

* * *

><p>"All right!" Luffy said excitedly while sitting on top of <em>Merry's<em> head. "To the place we should never, ever go!"

Pagaya said that our ship would take too long to get there because the wind was blowing the opposite direction, but if we traveled with dials, we'd be there in no time.

"Just how long is 'considerable'?" Sanji asked.

"However long it takes for the wind to come 'round…" he said. "I'm sorry."

Luffy ran into the Merry's storage and came out with the broken waver. He jumped off the ship and took to the water, sinking almost immediately.

I sighed. _He just wants to go to Upper Yard… _

Zoro had to jump in to save him yet again. When we were all back on the beach, Zoro was scolding Luffy while simultaneous stepping on his inflated stomach to get all the water out of him.

Pagaya said that he might be able to fix the waver, being a dial ship engineer by trade.

_How convenient! _I thought.

While Pagaya was trying to fix the waver, Chopper and I were making cloud-men (a snowman made out of clouds), but Usopp was making cloud sculptures.

Chopper used his hoof prints for the eyes.

"It's so cute!" I said, admiring our work.

"Usopp, look!" Chopper chimed.

"Yours may be cute, but mine is art!" Usopp said, revealing his creation.

It was our crew, except all of us were bowing down to him. I admit it was good, but it was a little selfish…

Sanji destroyed it and kicked Usopp for good measure.

"That was a little overboard, Sanji-san…" I said.

All of a sudden, a bunch of soldiers wearing tacky cloud-patterned pants came marching down the steps to Angel Beach.

The one in charge yelled, "Suspicious people, halt!"

Once they reached the bottom steps, they starting crawling on the ground towards us.

"Why are they doing that…?" Sanji asked.

"Dunno…" Usopp said. "They're… probably weirdoes."

We all stared at the strange spectacle of soldiers crawling towards us and walked towards Luffy, who was closest to them.

"Troops, halt!" yelled the front soldier on the ground.

They stopped crawling and stood up to salute Conis and Pagaya with a "Heso!"

They greeted the soldiers back like nothing was out of the ordinary.

"Who are they?" Zoro asked. He actually got up from taking a nap to see them.

"You are the eight illegal entrants from the Blue Sea, correct?!" the head officer yelled. "We're here to bestow Heaven's Judgment upon you!"

Conis and Pagaya gasped and stared at us with wide eyes.

"Illegal entrants?" Luffy asked nonchalantly. "What's that mean?"

"There's no use denying it," said the officer. He pulled out a stack of pictures from inside his light cape and said, "The Heaven's Gate lookout, Amazon, has sent us these photos."

Pagaya promised that we were all good people and that there had to be some sort of mistake.

"Please no excuses," he said. "Just accept your guilt. However, there is no need to worry. Illegal entry is a minor, Class-11 crime punishable by Heaven's Judgment. Once you have received your punishment, you will be returned to the status of peaceful tourists."

I sighed in relief, but hoped that the punishment wasn't going to be too severe.

"What's the punishment?" Sanji asked.

"It is a simple matter," replied the officer. "Pay ten times the immigration fee. If you pay the fee immediately, your crime will be written straight off. 10,000,000,000 Extol per person, so that's 80,000,000,000 Extol for all eight of you."

"How much is an Extol in Berries?!" Usopp asked.

"Berry? The currency of the Blue Sea, correct?" the officer asked. "I believe 10,000 Extol is one berry."

"If that's the case, 80,000,000,000 Extol would be 8,000,000 Berries," Robin said.

Sanji freaked out. "That's too much! I could buy tons of rice with that!" he yelled. "Why do we have to pay such a ridiculous amount after risking our lives to get up here?!"

"What are you saying?" the officer asked. "You should have just paid the original 800,000 Berry immigration fee at the gate."

"That's still too expensive!" Sanji yelled.

"Not to mention Nami-chan wouldn't be happy to know that the fee was that much…" I added.

"Forget it, let's just leave them be," Sanji said to the rest of us. "I'm worried that something happened to Nami-san… She could be crying somewhere at this very moment!"

"Yeah, let's get going!" Luffy said. "Since the winds back, let's go adventur- I mean search for Nami!"

Usopp freaked out and grabbed Luffy by the collar. He calmed down and let go. We all looked at him, confused. "Well, if Nami's only out for a little walk, she should be back soon…" he said, trying to cover up for her. Also, I think he was trying to reason with Luffy's yearning to go to the forbidden Upper Yard. "We could miss her if she comes back," he added.

"Indeed," Robin said.

"But Luffy wants to go," Zoro said.

"We shouldn't get into any more trouble than we're already in and wait until Nami comes back," Usopp said.

"_If_ she comes back…" I said.

Usopp hit me in the bad arm and yelled, "Don't say that!"

"Don't hit Magnolia-chan!" Sanji yelled at him, kicking him in the head.

Words could not describe how much my arm hurt. I bit my lip really hard and tried to stop the tears threatening to fall.

_He didn't mean to hit me… He probably just forgot, that's all. Calm down, Magnolia. It doesn't hurt… It doesn't hurt…_

"Are you alright?" Robin asked.

"Y-yeah," I managed to say.

I couldn't focus enough on the voices around me but I remember the officer of the White Berets was talking to us. And then Usopp started telling everyone to wait for Nami.

Sanji walked me and Robin over to a little pergola on the beach and made tea, but I was trying to burst into tears. Robin noticed again and asked, "Are you sure you're alright, little watchman? Didn't he hit your broken arm?"

I nodded stiffly.

"That must hurt, does it not?" she asked.

I nodded stiffly again.

"Damn long nose!" Sanji said, hearing us. He started sprinting after Usopp.

"No," I said. "He didn't mean it." The pain was started to subside after all.

That's when Nami came back and ran straight into the head officer.

"Everyone, let's run for it!" Nami said after giving the waver back to Pagaya. She and Luffy started arguing over something trivial.

I walked over, not really interested in the tea.

"What kind of crime did she just commit?" Zoro asked Pagaya.

"Most likely obstruction of a public servant, a Class-5 crime," he replied.

"Good, it's still only Class-5…" Usopp said.

"It's not good!" Conis said. Everyone gathered around. "If you commit a Class-5 crime… then in the name of the god Enel, you will be sentenced to cloud-drifting."

"What's that?" Usopp asked.

"It's a death sentence!" she said.

"DEATH SENTENCE?!" we all yelled in alarm.

"Cloud-drifting is when a ship is set upon a piece of Sky Cloud," Conis explained. "It drifts through the sky endlessly, until everyone on board dies."

"I see," Robin said. "So that's how that ship fell out of the sky. Perhaps the _St. Bliss _suffered the same fate 200 years ago." She was talking about the galleon that fell on us.

"What have you done to the captain?!" one of the soldiers yelled.

Nami could talk her way out of this, I hoped as she stepped forward.

"Please don't get so upset," she said. "That was just a reflex… I mean, how do you say it… unintentionally? You know… It was, like, an accident! That's right, an accident! You see, it's so difficult to maneuver a waver, isn't it? And today was my first time riding one. The handling is so sensitive! How clumsy of me! Beginners should definitely keep away from such difficult things!"

She laughed cutely, trying to reel them in with her story.

Luffy just _had_ to blurt out that she could ride it fairly well. Usopp nearly strangled him.

Pagaya stepped forward as well. "Um, I'm sorry," he said. "I think we should treat Captain McKinley as soon as possible. I'm sorry!"

The soldiers freaked out and said, "Yeah, we probably should!"

"Then let's carry him up to my house!" Pagaya suggested.

"We appreciate your cooperation," the soldier said. They saluted him and said, "Heso!"

As the soldiers carried their captain up to Pagaya's house, they told us to stay on Angel Beach and not to move.

"I know that you aren't bad people," Conis said. "So please, hurry back home!" She ran off to join her father.

"We should listen to her," I said.

"Yeah," Nami said. "I saw it with my own eyes. An island filled with terrifying people!"

"So you did go to that forbidden place," Zoro said.

"The place we must never, ever set foot on?" Luffy asked, eyes sparkling with adventure again. "Terrifying people?"

Usopp and Chopper cover our captain's ears.

"It's nothing but trouble," Nami said. "We're leaving, right now!"

"Parting with Conis-chan breaks my heart, but if Nami-san says so…" Sanji said.

"As long as we're here, those two could get in trouble," Nami added.

"She's right," Usopp said. "If they're mistaken for our accomplices, their lives will be ruined. So if we leave by ourselves, we won't cause them any more trouble."

We started to get back on the ship to leave, but Luffy refused too.

"Run away!" Conis yelled to us.

We all looked over to see that the soldiers were back already.

"Enough! If you try to aid these criminals, you will suffer the consequences as well," the captain reminded her. "At any rate, for repeatedly direction abusive language towards us, and for the obstruction of a public servant, you Class-5 criminals are sentenced to cloud-drifting!"

"It was an accident!" Nami pleaded. She grabbed Luffy's hand and tried to get him on the ship.

"Arrest them!" the captain yelled. All of the soldiers whipped out bows and arrows. "Fire! Milky Arrow!"

Luffy yelled for Nami to get on the ship with he would deal with the soldiers. The arrows the soldiers fired created a path of clouds, all of which Luffy dodged. But the White Berets had on Skate Dials and rode along the cloud paths.

"Get him!"

Luffy stretched his arm and grabbed onto a nearby palm tree, avoiding all their attacks.

"Gum-Gum Fireworks!" he yelled as he spun into the air and started punching everything blindly, knocking out all the soldiers.

But the captain got away and hid in the trees.

"There's no going back now!" he yelled. "You are now Class-2 criminals! Beg and plead all you want… The priests of the Upper Yard will be the ones to judge you!"

We were already in a huge load of trouble, and we'd only just arrived…

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	25. The Sacrificial Altar

I was somber over the injustice of it all, but Luffy laughed, saying, "We're used to being wanted! But why did you have to come back?! We were about to set sail for adventure- I mean look for you!"

Nami made it perfectly clear by repeatedly hitting Luffy while yelling at him saying she was not going back to the island we weren't supposed to go to.

"Ok, we'll go and you can stay here," Luffy said.

"They'll come after me!" she said. "We're leaving!"

"What's more important?" Luffy asked. "Adventure or your life?!"

"MY LIFE!" she said, smacking so hard he landed a couple feet away.

"But we just got here…" I said sadly.

"Hey, is there any safe way to get back?" Usopp asked Conis and Pagaya.

"Well, I can't call it say given your situation, but…" she said. "There is a way, Cloud End." When asked how to get there, she replied, "The far east side of the cloud, to get there, you will have to descend to the White Sea."

"Great!" Usopp said. "So we can get back to our own sea that way, eh?"

"I'm not going back," Luffy said stubbornly.

"Do you _want_ to be executed?" Nami asked. "Well, even if we run for it, we might not be able to escape from those guys… If that's the case, it doesn't matter where we stay. They know where we are, so we have to get a move on. Let's set sail."

We started walking back towards the _Merry_, but Luffy asked Pagaya if we could have the rest of the food Sanji and he made for us. Being the nice man that he is, of course he agreed, so Sanji and Luffy made their way back to Pagaya's house with Conis and him.

I sighed and said, "Luffy-san only thinks of one thing, huh?"

And then Usopp went with them, saying that he wanted materials for _Merry's_ repairs.

"You guys!" Luffy yelled back at us. "Get the ship ready for adventure!"

"He still wants to go?!" Nami said, getting pissed off. "It's really scary there!"

"So what?" Zoro asked. "I don't care either way."

"Chopper? Maggie-chan?" Nami said. "You're on my side, right?"

"Don't reply," Zoro whispered to us.

Robin, who was already on the ship lowered down the rope ladder for us. She looked over the side and saw me trying to figure out how to get up with only one arm.

"Cinco Fluers!" she said. She sprouted five arms that each came out of each other. The last one grabbed onto my good arm and pulled me up onto the deck.

"Thank you, Robin-san!" I said.

She smiled and said, "No problem."

Eventually Nami came on board, but not on board with Luffy's plan of adventure.

Conis said she wanted to tell us something, so we let her on _Merry_ as well. Zoro was already asleep, so only Robin, Chopper, Nami and I listened to what she had to say. Apparently there was a special cloud current to take our ship in the White Sea.

"You can quickly cross this expanse of sea to the White Sea if you ride it," she said. "You'll be able to reach Cloud End with no problem."

"We just have to keep it a secret from Luffy and ride the current!" Nami said, eyes full of delight.

"By the time he realizes, it'll be too late," Chopper said.

"Whether he gives up or not afterwards is a different story," Robin said.

"I can guide you to the entry point using our waver," Conis suggested.

"Sure," Nami said. "We just need to pull it off without that idiot catching on."

"Is it really ok to trick Luffy-san?" I asked, unsure about her grand plan. "He'll get mad…"

"We'll be fine, Maggie-chan," Nami said. "Don't worry."

"Well, then, please raise your anchor and wait here," Conis said.

"Got it," Nami said. "We owe you one, Conis!"

"Oh, it's nothing…" she said, looking a bit nervous. "Well, then, I'll go get the waver."

She got down from the ship by the rope ladder.

"A ray of hope has opened up!" Nami praised.

"But does that current really exist?" Robin asked.

"Why wouldn't it?" I asked.

"If such a convenient current exists… wouldn't more people from the sky islands be living on the Blue Sea?" Robin said.

_She has a point…_ I thought. _But Conis wouldn't lie to us, right?_

As everyone else got ready to set sail, I began to have a funny feeling about Robin's words…

_But what if Conis was lying?_ I thought.

"Nah, we'll be fine," I said, brushing it off as I sat down in a chair on the deck.

Nami put on a t-shirt over her bikini top and said, "As soon as the others get back… we set sail!"

Immediately after she said that, the sea started rumbling, like there was a giant creature passing under us.

"What's happening?" I yelled.

Zoro shot up instantly.

"Maybe the current is right here!" Chopper said, hanging onto the stair railing.

The _Merry_ started rushing into the sea backwards like something was carrying it.

"What's going on?! What is that?!" Nami asked, seeing something under the ship.

"Didn't we get onto the current thing?" Zoro asked.

"No, it seems to be something quite different," Robin said.

And with a sudden jump, the _Merry_ was being carried above the water by some kind of giant shrimp!

"Where's that thing taking us?!" Zoro yelled. "Everyone jump off the ship, we can still make it back!"

"What about _Merry_?!" I asked, clinging to my chair with one arm. "We can't leave her!"

"Don't worry," Zoro said. "I'll stay here."

"What are you going to do all by yourself?!" Nami yelled.

"I'll think of something!" he said, jumping off the ship and onto the shrimp. As he landed, he tried cutting the hard shell all over, but it wouldn't break.

Robin put down the rope ladder and said it wouldn't work calmly. "Even if you can break it, there are others that will come from behind, look."

She was right. There were even more creatures lined up behind us so we wouldn't be able to swim back.

"Then… we have to go to that island…?" Nami asked, sinking to the ground. "LUFFY!" she yelled in vain.

After a couple minutes of silence, I finally said what was on everyone's mind.

"What's gonna happen to us?" I asked quietly.

No one replied.

* * *

><p>The shrimp left the <em>Merry<em> on top of some stone ruins deep inside a forest. Without any clue as to where we were, how to get back, or what to do, we all just stood around looking at the ominous forest.

"All we know is that we're somewhere inland on Upper Yard," Nami said.

But then, Robin just had to say, "This place appears to be a sacrificial altar."

"S-sacrificial altar?!" Chopper and I said simultaneously.

"Then we're gonna be killed?!" Chopper asked.

Chopper, who was freaking out on the railing, fell backwards and down the steep staircase that led to the cloud-water-way the shrimp had taken.

"Chopper!" Nami said in alarm.

I looked over the railing and saw him fall. But Robin saved him just as he was about to fall into the water with two of her hands.

Then, a giant sea monster burst out of the water and was about to eat Chopper. But Zoro got there just in time to save Chopper from being eaten alive.

"Oh, look," Robin said. "A shark in the sky."

Chopper came sprinting up screaming in fright as Zoro still battled the sky shark. The battle waged on under the water and we all waited in anxiety for Zoro to surface again.

"Where is he?" I asked. "Do you see him?"

"Zoro…" Chopper said.

Just then, both sky shark and Zoro exploded out of the water, except Zoro was practically in the shark's mouth, holding it back with only his swords and brute strength.

"Zoro!" Nami said, worried about him.

"He's losing!" Chopper yelled.

The sky shark dove back into the water with Zoro in tow.

We all stared at the water around us in stunned silence. Was he going to survive?

"He's not coming back up!" Chopper exclaimed.

"Is he not gonna come back up…?" Nami asked, worried.

Chopper screamed that he was eaten, but I said that it wasn't possible for Zoro to be beaten by a shark.

"If he got eaten, the clouds would be turning red," Robin noted.

"See!" I said. "He's fine. Just you wait, he'll come back up."

All of a sudden Zoro punched the shark out of the water and sent it flying off into the forest. He came swaggering back up the altar's stairs with a grimace on his face, dripping wet. I waved my good hand, clapping with my shoulder for him as he came up victorious.

"Guess we won't be swimming away from here," he said.

"I don't think that was a possibility anyway…" I said.

"Why did you punch the shark if you're a swordsman?" Nami asked, criticizing him.

"He's so strong!" Chopper admired.

"Whatever happened to your pride as a swordsman?" she asked as he took off his wet shirt.

"Just shut up, woman!" he yelled angrily.

I sighed as Nami rolled her eyes and went inside to get something.

"Well, we can't stay here forever," Robin noted.

Zoro started squeezing out the water from his shirt as he said, "He really screwed us over, stupid shrimp."

"Perhaps Heaven's Judgment is to let us starve here," Robin wondered.

"Would God do something that simple?" Zoro asked.

Nami threw Zoro a blue shirt and it landed on his head. I giggled as he grabbed it off of his head and put it on.

"I don't know, I've never met him," Robin answered simply.

Zoro started droning on and on and on and on about how the ship was starting to look even more beat up. If we managed to get the _Merry_ down from the altar, she probably wouldn't even float! He set Chopper in charge of thinking of a way to repair the ship.

"Why? Where are you going?" Nami asked.

"I wanna go check out the forest," he said. "We might as well use this spot as a base for now. I'm sure Luffy and the others are gonna try to find us here."

"As they say, 'if you get lost, don't move'," I said.

"Exactly," he said.

_You're one to talk…_ I thought.

Robin got off the ship using the rope ladder and started looking at the ancient writings on the altar's wall.

I watched her as she placed her hand on the wall, reading the archaic scribe. I leaned over the railing and said, "Does it say anything interesting?"

"Prayers and things of the sort," she replied.

"Are you coming or staying, Maggie-chan?" Nami asked.

Chopper looked at me with pleading eyes so I said I would stay with him since I was injured.

So Zoro, Nami, and Robin set out into the forest to explore while Chopper and I stayed with the ship.

"Goodbye!" we called together. "Be safe!"

"You're in charge, Chopper," Nami yelled.

"Why me?" he asked.

"You're older than Maggie-chan, right?" she said.

Chopper and I looked at each other for a while. "I am?" he asked. "How old are you?"

"I'm twelve," I said.

His face turned into a huge grin as he said, "Wow! I am older than you! I'm fifteen!"

"Really…?" I asked.

"Well, whatever. Take good care of the ship," Zoro called back to us as all three walked into the forest.

"They'll be fine, right?" Chopper asked.

I nodded and said, "Yeah, they'll be alright."

"Ok, then you get some rest, Magnolia," Chopper said. "I'll work on fixing the ship."

"Got it, Chopper-san!" I said.

Why they left a fifteen year old reindeer with a twelve year old girl to guard a ship in the middle of a dangerous forest was beyond me. But they did, so we would have to go along with whatever Zoro said since he was the first mate.

* * *

><p>"I'm <em>so<em> bored!" I groaned in the kitchen. "Why did I stay? This is just mind numbingly boring…"

I tapped the kitchen table with my fingernails and tried to create different rhythms with each eight count.

My arm had been completely still for a couple hours and it was hurting pretty badly by that point. I tried to keep my mind off of it even though there was nothing interesting to do.

I sighed and started hearing the repeated hammering of nails into wood. Chopper was working on the ship, as promised.

"What am I supposed to do…?" I asked myself.

I sat back in the chair and looked up at the ceiling. I started counting the different beams above me and when I got to ten, I groaned and looked away, still unsure what to do.

I sighed yet again and placed my good arm's elbow on the table to rest my head on. Finally I just got up and started watching Chopper hammer things onto the ship with his Heavy Point.

I pulled up the closet chair and started watching him.

But even that bored me to no end. So I decided to make some fun with my Devil Fruit powers.

"Rewound…" I whispered under my breath, casting a spell of slowness onto my friend.

It was really funny watching him hammer nails in slow motion, but it wore off in a couple seconds. He didn't even notice!

I did it a second and third time before he got mad at me.

"Stop doing that!" he said, looking up, but still hammering.

"Sorry," I said guiltily.

"What did you even do? It felt like I was suddenly going slower…" he said.

"You're right, I slowed you down," I said.

"OWW!" he yelled, accidently hammering his finger instead of the nails. He clutched his thumb in pain and threw the hammer down.

Only it fell down and down the stairs of the sacrificial altar, but thankfully stopped at the last step.

We locked eyes for a second in panic.

"I'm not going down there," he said. "It's scary."

"Well, I'm not going either!" I said. "I'm injured to begin with! You go, you're older and a guy. This is guy stuff. And plus, you're the one who dropped it in the first place."

"I wouldn't have if you didn't distract me!" he argued, switching to his normal size. "You go get it, I'm smaller than you! Age has nothing to do with it!"

"Maybe they'll think you're less of a snack since you're smaller," I theorized.

He narrowed his eyes.

This argument was getting us nowhere.

I took a deep breath and said calmly, "What if we go down there together-"

"But-"

"Let me finish," I said. "But I'll give us cover by stopping time, so the sky sharks won't know we're there."

"Great idea!" he said.

All of a sudden, a gigantic sky shark leaped out of the water and jumped over the ship.

We both screamed and rolled flat on the floor in terror.

"This isn't a good idea!" Chopper said. "We're both gonna die!"

"Just stay away from the railings… and we'll be fine… I hope…" I said, standing up. My stomach lurched at the thought of going down to retrieve the fallen hammer. And I hurt my arm as I hit the deck in fear of being eaten.

This was just not a good day for me.

"Let's go…" I said nervously.

"Wait," he said. He quickly ran to the mast and on a peg was a white whistle. He picked it up and gave it to me. "Put this on just in case we get in trouble. Blow it if anything happens, ok? A really strong guy will come save us."

I put the whistle around my neck and said, "Ok."

Chopper gulped and put his hoof in my good hand. Snot dripped out of his blue nose as he said, "Let's just get this over with."

I nodded and said, "Tick-Tock."

Time stopped and Chopper changed into Heavy Point to pick me up and carry me off the ship. He changed back as we landed on the stone ground. We both ran quickly to get the hammer and get back onto the ship.

Even though time was stopped, it still was unnerving to stand at the last step of a sacrificial altar surrounded by a lake full of ferocious sky sharks.

As I started time again when we were safe back in the middle of the deck, Chopper said everyone would be impressed that we were handling things so well.

That made me cheer up a little.

"They'll be impressed!" I said, a little flattered. "Well, we are doing pretty amazing, if I do say so myself."

"Oh, that doesn't make me happy, stupid!" he said, clearly happy.

We both laughed. We make a pretty cool pair, Chopper and I. It was the start of a beautiful friendship later to come.

"Oh, by the way, how's your arm? Do you want me to look at it again?" he asked.

"It's hurting pretty badly…" I admitted. "But I didn't want to bother you…"

"I'm a doctor!" he said. "I'm supposed to help! Come on, let me see it. Here, let's go into the kitchen."

We walked into the kitchen together. He stood up on a chair and I sat down and took off the sling gingerly.

"Yep, it looks about the same as before," he said. "You're still not moving it, right?" I nodded. "Ok, at least both the breaks are clean, so it'll take less time to heal. But it still will hurt for a couple more weeks. Keep it in the sling and you'll be fine."

"Ok, doc!" I said, putting the sling back on.

"I'm going to go work on the ship," Chopper said, exiting the kitchen.

"Don't drop the hammer again…" I teased.

He laughed and said, "I won't!"

He closed the door behind him as I stayed in my seat.

I heard a flapping noise outside and wondered if a bird landed on the ship.

Then I heard Chopper scream from outside, "BLOW THE WHISTLE!"

_Whistle…? _I thought._ OH, that whistle! Wait… is something wrong?!_

I blew it without hesitation as hard as I could and ran outside to see what the trouble was. There was a tough-looking man on a bird who had perched on the railing of the ship in front of Chopper.

"Oh, so there is another sacrifice here…" he said. "They look weak. This'll be an easy job."

Chopper was trembling in fear.

"Now…" said the man. "Offer your lives to God Enel!" He lunged a lance towards Chopper, who jumped out of the way quickly, screaming.

"Chopper-san!" I yelled.

I reached for the bag on my hip where I usually kept all of my things, but it wasn't there. Suddenly, I realized I left it in the crow's nest!

I started panicking. How was I supposed to fight without my dagger?!

Where the man's lance hit the ground, it burst into flames.

"Why do you struggle?" the man asked. "There's no way you can escape death! Die gracefully!"

The man's bird pulled into the air and breathed fire at us.

"REWOUND!" I yelled at them, slowing them down. I tried to hold it longer than ever as I grabbed Chopper's hoof and ran off the _Merry_.

As soon as he became normal, the rope ladder to the crow's nest caught fire.

"The ship!" Chopper yelled, seeing it too.

Chopper grew into his Heavy Point and said, "Magnolia, stay back!" He grabbed the rope and broke the iron that connected it to the ship to try and put out the fire with his feet.

"Are you sure?" I asked.

"You're injured, I'll handle this!" he said bravely.

"Oh, so the girl's weaker than the other one, hm?" the man said. My eyes widened in terror as I saw the man make eye contact with me. He grinned smugly and said, "I don't know what kind of trick you pulled earlier, but this time… You die first!"

"Who the hell are you?!" Chopper screamed at him, I guessed trying to distract him. "Stop it! Don't harm anyone!"

He jumped off his bird and lunged for me with his lance. I jumped out of the way in the nick of time and landed on the ground, broken arm first.

I yelped in pain tried to stand up, eyes welling up with tears.

Before I knew what happened, I was being kicked into the mast of the ship. The impact of the blow broke the mast as I slid down onto the floor. Fire came spurting in my direction as I tried to get to my feet.

"Tick-Tock!" I yelled, stopping time.

I rested on the floor, trying to catch my breath and stood up. Since my arm didn't hurt when I stopped time, I kicked the lance out of his hand and ran up the stairs and behind the door to the kitchen.

"Un-Tock," I whispered, starting time again.

"Magnolia!" Chopper yelled too late. "Oh… Where did she go?"

At once, all the fatigue and pain hit me like a sucker punch to the gut and I keeled over, clutching my injured arm trying to hold back the tears and stay as silent as possible at the same time.

The door was kicked in on me and I was flying into the table, hitting my head it.

"Stop struggling, girl," he said.

I opened my aching eyes and saw that he was holding his lance above my face.

"Die," he said.

Chopper burst into the room and tried to tackle him to the ground. "Stop it! Stop it!" he yelled.

But the man dodged and kicked Chopper back out of the kitchen.

"Wait your turn!" he yelled.

"Chopper-san…" I managed to say. I looked out the window and saw that the mast had caught fire as well.

I closed my eyes in defeat.

We were no match for him.

I could hear Chopper yelling and pleading from outside, "Don't harm us or the ship! Please just stop it!"

The man turned around and saw that Chopper had completely taken the mast off the ship and thrown it into the water to keep the fire from spreading.

"Magnolia!" Chopper yelled.

I stopped time for the last time and crawled out of the kitchen. Even in the pain-free zone I felt my arm throbbing. I kept crawling until I got behind Chopper and then I couldn't stop time anymore.

As time started again, I couldn't move a muscle and everything hurt.

"Magnolia!" he said, seeing me. "We're not gonna die. They left me in charge of the ship; I promise we'll be ok!"

I smiled weakly and passed out from over-using my Devil Fruit.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	26. Old Scars

I had a strange dream while I was unconscious.

_I was in a completely white room, lying on a black leather couch that wasn't that comfortable. I sat up and looked around the room. The carpet was a dark black and there were other couches lying around the huge room._

_But sitting across from me was a woman in an elegant red dress that had shiny crystals sewn into it. I couldn't see her face; she was looking to the floor._

"_Hello…?" I asked the woman. "Where am I?"_

"_You're safe now, sweetie…" she said. "You're ok now."_

_I recognized the voice immediately. It was my mother._

"_Mom…?" I asked. "Is that really you?!"_

_She looked up. Her face was exactly the same as I remembered it. Her raven black hair had gotten so much longer since I saw her last. Her brown eyes seemed brighter than ever._

_And she nodded at me, with tears streaming down her face. "Yes," she said._

"_Where have you been?" I asked. "I thought you were dead!"_

"_I can assure you, I am alive," she said, wiping her eyes. "It's good to see you in person, Maggie. But, I'm afraid you must be leaving now."_

"_What?" I asked. "No! I want to stay with you!"_

"_You will, soon," she said. "I promise, we'll meet again soon."_

_My vision started blurring as the dream faded away._

"_Mom!" I yelled for her. "Mom!"_

But I woke up.

I sat up in reality and blinked a couple times. Something was weird about the dream, almost like it wasn't a dream.

It felt so real…

But I shook it off and rid my eye of the tear threatening to fall.

"It was only a dream…" I whispered. "Mom is gone, Magnolia. Get a grip."

But that's when I realized that I felt completely fine. No pain at all, not even in my arm. It was almost like nothing was wrong with me.

"Magnolia!" Chopper said, seeing I was awake. "You're awake!"

I finally realized that I was still on the _Merry_.

"What happened with the guy with the bird?" I asked.

"He went away…" Chopper said. "Are you feeling ok?"

"Never better," I said honestly. "Really, not even my arm hurts."

Chopper scowled and said, "Maybe you went back into shock…" He walked over to me and pulled my arm from the sling. I didn't even flinch. He inspected it and found nothing wrong. "EHH?! What the heck! It was broken before! What happened?! What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything, it just healed itself or something!" I said.

"But that's impossible!" Chopper said. He started circling me, inspecting every inch and found absolutely nothing wrong with me. Even after I was beaten to a pulp by the priest!

I was completely fine with no explanation whatsoever. That is, until…

I heard my mother's voice in my head say, _You're welcome, Maggie! But you need to learn to heal yourself next time… Boss is going to get mad at me if I keep healing you like this… Be safe, sweetie!_

I blinked a lot, thinking I was hearing things.

"What?" Chopper asked. "What's wrong?"

"I thought I heard something…" I said.

"What did you hear?" he asked.

"My mom…"

Chopper looked at me sympathetically and said, "You might've just imagined it…"

"Yeah," I said. "Probably."

"Well, anyway," he said.

"Oi, Chopper!" I heard Nami call from somewhere in the forest. "Maggie-chan! Are you guys there?!"

I stood up and smiled, seeing that Zoro, Robin and Nami had returned safely.

"We're good!" I called back.

"Yeah!" Chopper added. "Nothing scary happened… not one thing!"

Nami snorted with laughter.

But then, something else caught our attention.

Luffy, Usopp and Sanji were all entering the lake on a small boat. As they neared all the sky sharks, Luffy Gum-Gum Gatling-ed them out of the way.

They all waved to us.

The gang was back together again!

* * *

><p>Once everyone was aboard again, Chopper told everyone what happened. Apparently, the Sky Knight had come to save us and nearly died in the process. He was in the boy's room on a couple blankets Chopper set out for him. Chopper said he would recover, but everyone was still worried.<p>

The _Going Merry_ had seen better days. The mast was somewhere in the middle of the lake, it was beat up and burned, and I'm pretty sure she wouldn't float if we tried to get her back in the water.

But then, I realized something that probably was the worst news of the day.

"My bag was in the crow's nest!" I said.

Chopper's eyes bulged out of his head. "It was?!" he asked. "I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry! I was trying to save the ship and-"

"No, no," I said. "It's alright… It's my fault for leaving it there in the first place…"

"Maybe we can get it back!" he said.

But I knew there wasn't much hope for my bag. I tried to cope with the fact my precious dagger was gone and my only set of handcuffs left was at the bottom of the lake.

I sighed and said, "I'll manage without it. Really, it's ok."

I was a little upset that my dagger was gone, but the evening took my mind off of the loss.

The thing is, even though I really hate my dad for all the terrible things he put me through, I still respect that he is my father. It's a complicated relationship… He gave me the dagger and told me to protect myself with it, so I will. It's a kind of love-hate relationship I guess… I don't really even think I fully understand it myself.

But then, Sanji said we were going to get to camp out in the forest!

"If we stay here and have the fight, the ship will be completely ruined!" Usopp said.

"Also, it's probably easier to fight on the shore," Sanji added.

"Camping!" I said. "I've never been camping before."

"Let's have a party!" Luffy said excitedly.

"Yeah!" Chopper agreed.

"Wait…" Usopp said. "We have to camp in enemy territory?!"

But Luffy wasn't listening. "Let's start by barbecuing those sky sharks!"

And so the party was set and Zoro sliced up one of the sky sharks with no problem. I found it weird how he had so much trouble with one before, but then beat one so easily now.

"Guess this one was just weaker," he said when I asked him about it on the shore.

We all gathered wood for a bonfire and Sanji got the sky shark meat ready for cooking stew. Once the fire was started, Sanji began the cooking.

Starting the fire made me think back to Alabasta, specifically when I got lost with Luffy's brother. He was made of fire, so making a fire was no hard task. I smiled at the thought of Ace. It seemed so long ago that our adventure in Alabasta was over. But a new one up here was only just starting.

Usopp pitched a tent around our campfire for the girls to sleep in. I sat down on a large root next to Robin and Chopper.

Usopp called our attention to him. He'd set up a chalkboard in the middle of the forest. "Time for reports! Everyone be quiet! Sanji's group, you go first. Tell us what happened."

Everyone became silent and looked to Sanji for his story.

"We encountered Satori from the Illusion Forest, a priest who uses surprise balls," he said. "The surprise balls were one thing, but the toughest part was that he predicted our movements using a technique called Mantra or something."

"Scary…" Chopper said.

"Ok, you next, Chopper's group!" Usopp ordered.

"The priest Shura, who appeared out of nowhere, uses a spear thing that burns everything!" Chopper said, enthusiastically. "He predicts movements too, but he couldn't predict Magnolia's… I think it's probably because she can stop time, but that's beside the point… I tried to attack him many times, but he kept dodging. The bird he was riding blew flames and burned the main mast. The Sky Knight was defeated, too…"

"Man, you guys really had a hard time," Nami noted.

"Yeah," I said, patting Chopper on the shoulder. "But we did everything we could, right?"

"Yep," he said.

"Nami's group!" Usopp ordered.

"Well, we discovered that this island is the other half of Jaya," she said. "The city of gold didn't sink in the ocean; it flew up in the sky!"

"Alright!" Usopp said. "Thanks for your reports! Based on your reports, we've learned many things. However, the biggest discovery is this!" He pointed to the chalkboard where he had taken notes on our stories. "This island is the city of gold!"

"I literally just said that…" Nami said.

"So what's this Mantra thing?" Zoro asked.

"Maybe it's like intuition or something…" Sanji said.

Chopper, who brought the Sky Knight with us, was tending to his wounds as I looked back.

Robin tapped my knee and I turned to look at her. "Are you alright, little watchman?" she asked.

I nodded, smiling, and said, "Yep! Chopper-san said I'm completely fine now."

"Even your arm?" she asked. I nodded. "But it was broken only this morning, wasn't it?"

"Amazing, huh?" I said.

"Yes, quite," she said, looking at me intently.

"Ahh, I can't wait!" Luffy said. "This gold sounds fun!"

And so that was it. We were going to find the city of gold, despite a warning that it would make god mad.

"We've got enough enemies. It's gonna be a survival game!" Zoro said, looking forward to tomorrow.

"Shouldn't we at least be a tiny bit afraid of god?!" Usopp asked, completely terrified.

I admit, I was a little unsettled by Zoro's words of the survival game.

Luffy stood up and put his arms in the air, laughing mischievously. "Alright! Let's do it! Gold hunting!" he yelled.

I was kind of confused as to what our actual goal was, finding the gold or finding god…

But as everyone else either opposed or agreed with Luffy's plan, I was thinking to myself about my mom's voice earlier.

"_You need to learn to heal yourself next time… Boss is going to get mad at me if I keep healing you like this… Be safe, sweetie!"_

Was it even possible…? Could my mom still be alive? If so, how was she communicating with me?

But I mentally slapped myself at the thought.

_Mom is dead, _I thought. _There's no way she can just talk to me in my head, it's impossible. Old scars shouldn't be opened again._

But, for argument's sake, if she was alive and well, what did she mean by 'heal yourself next time' or 'Boss is going to get mad'?

Who was she working for? And how could she heal?

Thoughts raced through my mind as I tried to make sense of her mysterious words.

But then, a thought occurred to me.

_If my Devil Fruit is the Tick-Tock Fruit, a fruit that lets me control time… couldn't that mean I could speed things up? Even wounds? Is that what Mom meant by 'healing yourself'?_

I searched around the floor, looking for something sharp on the ground and found a sharp rock near my feet. I hesitantly cut a tiny section of my finger and watched as the blood pooled up into a bubble and then ran down my hand.

I looked at the little wound and concentrated very hard. I sped up the healing rate of the broken skin and it mended itself in about a second. There was no mark or even a scar to indicate I had cut myself.

I smiled at the thought of a new power.

_What should I call this new ability?_ I asked myself excitedly.

Since I wasn't very creative at the moment, I came up with a really stupid title: Time Mend. But hey, it worked so I thought I'd keep it.

Then we split up, each assigned a job to accomplish before the sun went down.

Luffy and Sanji stayed at camp to cook the food under Sanji's directions. Chopper and Zoro went out to look for medical herbs along with other edible plants. Robin went exploring and came back with a salt crystal. I watched Nami as she wrote things down on pieces of paper, but I wasn't really paying attention to what she was writing. Usopp was gathering up wood to repair the _Merry_.

Sanji called everyone together and said that the stew was ready. He and Chopper handed out bowls to everyone.

"Ladies first," he reminded Chopper.

Once we all began eating, Nami said we needed to have a strategy meeting for tomorrow.

Apparently the two islands of Jaya looked like a skull when placed together. So when Noland wrote that the gold was in the 'skull's right eye' that's where we needed to look! Nami also said that we should split into two teams tomorrow.

"There's no doubt about it!" she said. "There's an enormous amount of gold waiting for us here!"

Even ate the delicious stew and kept eating until there was none left at all. The sun was almost set and I was beginning to feel a little drowsy.

"It's gotten pretty late. We need to put out any unnecessary fires," Robin suggested. "They'll reveal our location to the enemy."

But despite all of that, we made an even bigger bonfire than before to keep the wild animals away.

But even still, we were almost attacked by wolves. Nami just _had_ to punch the Alfa.

But the Alfa told his pack that they were no match for us and took a liking to Nami because 'she packed a mean punch'.

"Did we just work things out…?" Usopp asked.

"Seems that way," Zoro said.

"Then let's all have a campfire together!" Luffy suggested.

"Yeah!" we all cheered/howled.

Robin just sat on a root and smiled at us, amused at the light-hearted atmosphere.

So as the sun set, we partied with the wolves.

I, however, found it hard to keep my eyes open, but it was hard to sleep with all the noise everyone was making.

Robin and I sat next to each other, watching the crazy bonfire. The Sky Knight eventually woke up and we all thanked him for helping us out.

I yawned and went to sleep in the tent set up for the girls before everyone else.

I dreamed about my mother again that night. But I was younger and Dad was there too. We were back in our house in the East Blue and everyone was happy again.

I didn't want to wake up, but I had too. The sunlight poured onto my eyelids through the tent's opening. I opened my eyes and got up.

_Maggie, I got something for you! _my mother's voice said in my head._ Look to your side, sweetie._

"Mom…" I whispered, looking to the side.

And there it was. My bag.

I stared at it for the longest time, wondering how it could've gotten there.

"But…" I said. "It was at the bottom of the lake!"

I opened it in my lap and saw that everything was in there: my dagger, the last set of handcuffs. (Despite its depth and size, I only kept those two items in it.)

I looked around the tent and saw I was the last one awake. Robin and Nami had already left.

I put my eye patch one, ran my fingers through my hair, put my bag's strap over my shoulder and stepped outside to face the day.

* * *

><p>"The <em>Going Merry's<em> been repaired!" we all said, completely shocked at the spectacle before our eyes.

Everyone was back on the sacrificial altar and staring at the repaired ship. Even the mast was back!

Usopp was crying by the time we all stepped foot on the deck.

I looked up at the crow's nest and wondered how my bag had gotten to me and even how the mast had gotten out of the water!

"But who'd fix our ship for us out here?" Zoro asked. "The only people besides us in Upper Yard are our enemies…"

"Maybe it was an angel!" I said. "Even my bag was given back."

"Hmph!" Nami said. "I'd be more worried if someone wrecked it, but since it's fixed, who cares who did it?"

"But shouldn't we thank them?" Chopper asked.

"C'mon _Merry_… Who was that?" Usopp asked the ship.

* * *

><p>After one failed attempt at getting the newly repaired ship off of the altar, Usopp finally came up with a plan that was bound to work.<p>

And it consisted of using Chopper as sky shark bait.

It actually worked! The _Merry_ was lowered into the lake with the help of a sky shark.

"Way to go, Usopp!" Nami cheered.

Chopper was completely traumatized.

"You were so brave, Chopper!" I praised. "You were awesome!"

* * *

><p>Once everyone was back on the boat, we held a final strategy meeting.<p>

"The search team will go this way, straight south…" Nami said, pointing to the map of Skypiea. "The right eye should have some sort of ruins, so watch out for enemies and bring some gold back!"

"You make it sound so simple…" Zoro complained.

"I'd love to investigate the ruins!" Robin said.

"You keep talking about the gold, but you're not coming?" Luffy asked Nami.

"No way! It's too scary," she said. "Meanwhile, we'll leave the island in the Merry," she continued. "We'll be in danger, too, you know. We'll head for the beach ruins area as fast as possible. Let's meet up there, and then escape from Skypiea." She pointed to the respective places on the map.

There were two teams, the search team and the escape team.

Through some begging and pleading on both ends, I got to go with the search team.

"I'm completely healed!" I said. "Ask Chopper, he said so!"

"It's still too dangerous!" Nami said.

"Hey, if she wants to go, let her go," Zoro said.

"Can I, please?!" I asked again.

Nami sighed and finally let me go with the search team.

"Yes!" I cheered.

So the search team consisted of Chopper, Luffy, Zoro, Robin and me. The escape team was Sanji, Nami and Usopp.

We all got ready for our part in the mission.

"This is going to so much fun!" I squealed.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	27. Third Wheel

"OI! Zoro! West is this way!" Luffy yelled at our directionally-challenged friend.

"You're so stupid…" Zoro said. "It's the skull's right eye, so we gotta go right!"

Chopper and I exchanged looked of 'Oh my god… are they serious?'.

"They're both going the wrong way…" I said.

"We're supposed to head south, so could you tell them it's this way?" Robin asked both of us as she pointed in the right direction.

"You got it!" Chopper said, starting to run over to our friends.

Once we had regrouped and were going the right direction, Robin led the way. I came up with a saying, When in doubt, not the way Luffy or Zoro goes.

"I thought this forest would be a scarier place, but it's not so bad!" Chopper said.

"Right?" I agreed.

"It's a let-down, to be honest," Zoro complained. "There was nothing in the forest yesterday, either. We didn't run into a single priest."

_Good news for me!_ I thought.

"Do you _want_ an accident to happen that badly?" Robin asked.

"Definitely not!" I replied immediately.

"But it could get boring if things stay this calm…" Luffy said.

"Boring is good sometimes," I said.

"Nah!" he said. "I like action better!"

All of a sudden, Chopper stopped and looked behind us. "It moved!" he said.

"What moved?" Luffy asked.

"Oh, nothing!" he said, trying to catch up with us. "It's nothing at all!"

As we kept walking, I could've sworn I kept hearing something move all around us. First behind, then to the right, then on our left! Maybe it was just my imagination, but there was a seed of doubt in my mind.

_What if something is following us?! _I thought, mentally panicking. _What if it's a priest?!_

But then I reminded myself that Luffy and Zoro were there. They were probably the strongest people I knew, so we'd be fine. I calmed down a little.

But then, Robin just _had_ to say, "I sense something strange."

I gulped.

"Why do you keep looking behind us, Chopper?" Zoro asked.

I gulped again.

"N-no reason at all!" he replied nervously.

"What are those big roots with a weird pattern?" Luffy asked, stopping to look behind us.

I looked behind Chopper and saw them. It was like a giant tube with a weird diamond-like pattern moving behind him.

"You see it, too?! I knew it was strange!" he said.

"But why are the roots moving?" Zoro asked.

"I-I don't think those are roots…" I said as the ground rumbled beneath our feet.

A giant snake head showed itself from behind one of the trees.

Chopper screamed in terror.

Its teeth alone were ten times the size of Zoro!

I reached into my bag and dug out my dagger. Even though it probably wouldn't do much against something a thousand times bigger than me, I was ready to fight.

"I'm not scared… I'm not scared at all…!" I tried to convince my trembling limbs.

"RUN!" Luffy yelled. "It's a giant snake!"

I didn't need to be told twice.

I ran as fast as I could to keep up with everyone else as the giant snake slithered behind us, ready to strike.

Everyone tried to distract it so that other people could escape, but we just ended up getting separated while trying to run away.

When I was sure that the snake wasn't following me anymore, I sheathed my dagger and looked around to see if anything looked familiar.

To my surprise, Robin was standing a little ways away.

"Robin-san!" I called, running after her.

"Oh, little watchman," she said, turning towards me. "Have you seen anyone else?"

I shook my head. "We got separated, I think," I said. "Should we wait for them?"

"I think we should press on," she said. "Maybe they're heading for the ruins as we speak."

I almost snorted at the thought of Zoro going the right direction for once.

As we walked through the forest, neither of us talked to each other. It was kinda awkward, to be honest.

But the silence was filled with many explosions and screams from a high pitched, almost girl-ish voice close by.

"The forest seems lively," Robin noted.

"Yeah," I said, looking around hesitantly.

Robin walked ahead of my while I kept up a couple paces behind. Suddenly, she stopped, but a couple seconds later jogged ahead.

_Maybe she sees something…_ I thought, running after her.

Sure enough, there were old ruins. She ran her hands along the old moss and vine-covered stone, intrigued at the history of the structure.

She started talking to herself. "This is a house away from the city. As expected, it's been swallowed by the forest. I wonder if the ruins of the actual city are intact…"

All of a sudden, there was a strange call, like a goat was in the forest or something. I looked up, confused, and saw a man drop onto the roof of the ruins.

"A woman…? And a child?" he said. "This route leads to God's Shrine! Going any further would be insolent!"

I was about to say we should go back, but Robin seemed mad at the man.

"Get down from there!" she yelled. "You don't seem to realize the historical calue that ruins have!"

_She's lecturing him…?_

"How impudent!" he said. I didn't even know what that meant, but he seemed angry as well.

"Do you have business with me? What do you want?" Robin asked.

_Did she forget I'm here…?_ I asked myself.

"Simple," he said. "By god's orders, I'm to chop the Shandians and you Blue Sea people into pieces with this axe dial!"

Robin didn't flinch one bit. "Seis Fleurs," she said as the six hands grabbed onto the man. "Twist." He was dead.

"Nice one, there," I said.

But she didn't reply. She only picked up a broken off piece of the building. "Just awful…" she said.

"He didn't seem like a priest," I said. "Maybe there are other people fighting in the forest. Maybe that's what those explosions were."

"Let's hope no one has died yet," she said, finally acknowledging my presence.

"Yeah," I agreed.

* * *

><p>Amongst the far off explosions and even more screams, Robin and I pressed on through the thick forest with even more ruins. Robin inspected nearly every inch of the ruins, trying to decipher the ancient writings and translate them.<p>

To be honest, I didn't really get why she was so absorbed in the whole process, so I just stayed quiet and tried not to disrupt her work.

"Shandora… That was this ancient city's name," she mumbled to herself as she wrote down notes in her journal.

A twig snapped behind me and made me flinch.

"Who's there?" she asked, turning around immediately.

There was a very tall man that was shaped like a circle standing there. He had at least four chins and wiry black hair.

"Why, hello there, cutie-pies," he said in a deep and silly voice.

"Are you another of god's henchmen?" Robin asked the fat man.

"Henchmen?" he asked. "Watch your mouth. I am Yama, Divine Commander for god Enel!"

I backed away from the man.

"What brings you here, Divine Commander?" Robin asked.

"Enough talk," he said. He threw his comically skinny arms in the air and yelled. He threw his fist towards us and punched the ruins as Robin and I jumped out of the way.

"What do you think this place is?! Don't destroy the ruins!" she yelled.

I got out my dagger and unsheathed it.

"Why don't you worry about yourself instead of some ruins, Missy?" he said.

As he took a step, he shattered the stone beneath him and moved quickly to attack once more.

"Punch Mountain!" he yelled, trying to hit either of us.

I jumped out of the way, but he followed Robin, who was backed up to a stone wall.

She looked behind her, almost panicking as the giant man went for a blow.

"Tick-Tock!" I yelled.

Everything around me froze. I looked around and saw Robin already moved out of the way, but was going to try to protect the ruins.

I took a deep breath and backed up a couple steps.

"Come on, Magnolia," I said. "You're strong. You can do this."

I got low, to get more stability and momentum and shot forward towards the man and kicked him out of the way and into a tree without hurting any of the ruins.

"Un-Tock!" I said as I dusted off my hands.

"How did I…?" he said as he flew into the tree.

I smiled at Robin and she looked relieved. But before she could say anything, I said, "The ruins seem important to you. We'll protect them together."

She nodded and said, "Yeah."

It was pretty much a one-sided fight when Robin and I got away from the ruins to protect them. After that, I let her do the hand thing and she snapped his neck.

I stuck out my hand for a high five, smiling cheerily, but she left me hanging and continued walking towards the ruins.

We found an entrance to a cave and went inside. I heard her mumble something about the center of the city, but I didn't make out anything else.

When we came out of the tunnel, there was a huge shrine-like altar and an even bigger bean stalk.

"Whoa!" I said, looking around. "I wonder where that thing leads!"

But she still wasn't listening. Robin was already half way up the stairs of the shrine.

"Wait for me!" I said, running after her. "Robin-san!"

When I finally caught up to her, she was cutting squares of cloud out from the floor.

"We can go below," she said.

She opened up a square in the floor and jumped in, her hands throwing down her hat and bag after her.

I looked down below and she was waiting for me to come down as well. Hesitantly, I dropped down below the ruins and landed on my feet.

"It's so vast…" she said. "These ruins really do go much deeper!"

She seemed so excited, but I didn't really get what was to be excited about.

"I thought it was strange that Blue Sea ruins had island clouds for ground…" she said, starting to walk away.

I felt like I was a third wheel. Like the architecture was her best friend and I was just there awkwardly with them.

Well, she found a stair case and started climber down, but what I really wanted to see was the giant bean stalk.

In a fairy tale that my mom told me once, giants lived up in the sky and the only way to get there was from a bean stalk grown from magic beans.

_Maybe there were more giants like the ones we met on Little Garden on this island!_ I thought.

With thoughts of above, I didn't really notice what was happening around me.

Suddenly, Robin's voice came from down the hall. "Little watchman!" she said. "We've found the city."

"The city of gold?" I asked, snapping back to reality. I ran down the hall and was disappointed when there wasn't any gold, only more ruins. "Oh…" I said.

"Isn't it wonderful?" she asked.

"Yeah," I said, trying to be enthusiastic. "Great."

"800 years ago, the city of Shandora fell," she said. "But it's hard to imagine when the city is still so majestic and beautiful! This is Shandora, the city of gold!"

"I don't see any gold…" I said.

But she wasn't listening. Robin was already running down the steps. I sighed and followed her as she walked through the fallen city.

As we walked, suddenly she stopped and gasped. I looked in front and saw a blue-ish grey plate stuck against the wall. There were weird symbols engraved on it.

Robin walked to it and put her hand on the piece, in awe of it. "They wrote with the ancient Poneglyph symbols so easily!" she said.

She started translating the words and then turned to me. "Noland's logbook mentioned a giant gold bell…" She turned back towards the wall. "It makes sense that they would mention one here."

She started walking away, but with a smile on her face this time.

I sighed again and followed after her.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	28. A Long Way Down

While Robin was still inspecting some of the ruins, I heard a man's laughter behind us.

"Isn't it amazing? Even after being shot up to the sky, this city, Shandora, still majestically exists like this," said the man.

I whirled around and saw a bare-chested mad with freakishly long earlobes tossing an apple in his hands.

Something about him made the hairs on my neck stand up.

"Even if it's a legendary city, if it's covered by clouds, it can't even show off its figure," said the strange man. "I'm the one who found it. Those stupid former gods didn't even notice this city."

"Who're you?" Robin asked.

"God…" said the man, smirking. He took a bite of the apple.

I backed away from the man and closer to Robin.

_This guy… He's the god?!_ I thought.

"You're pretty good," he said. "It seems like you're an archaeologist from the Blue Sea. And who's the little girl?"

"A friend," Robin replied.

I gulped, terrified of the man.

"It took even us several months to find these ruins," he said. "If you can read the letters on the ruins, you can find this place that easily? But the gold you're looking for isn't here any longer. You're a few years late."

"Gold?" she asked. "Come to think of it, I can't find any."

_You just noticed?!_

"It must be you who took it out of here," she said.

He took another bit from the apple and started talking while he was chewing. "Gold's a nice thing. That glittering metal suits me well."

"Then, you took the golden bell that used to be here, too?" she asked.

He looked confused. "Golden bell?" he asked, finishing the apple, even the core! "That's interesting. What did you learn by reading the letters?"

"Unfortunately, if it wasn't here when you first came here, it didn't come to the sky after all," she said. "I needed to see the belfry."

"No, wait…" he said. "Yes! It's here. It's here in the sky!" He went on to explain that when the island was blown up into the sky, the Skypeians heard the island singing, so it must've been the bell. "So that bell was made of gold… Wonderful!" He paused and looked to us. "Soon the game will be over. Eight more minutes to go. While I'm at it, why don't I look for the golden bell?"

_Game? What's he talking about?_

He laughed to himself, but suddenly stopped. He mumbled something to himself. The man got up and lightning started gathering around him. He held his fist in the air and narrowed his eyes. As he swung fist downward, there was a crack of thunder off in the distance.

Robin and I looked to each other, both confused as to what just happened.

"What did you just do…?!" she asked.

I was too frightened to say anything.

"I bestowed mercy," he said, smirking. "A pitiful worm was in great pain so I saved him by releasing him from it. It was my duty as god." He sighed. "It seems that the young woman is still behaving desperately, but that's perfect entertainment for the party."

I could just sense the bloodlust pulsating from him.

"They can all realize what despair is," he said. "Now, we are running out of time. Let's settle this, shall we? My ultimate plan will start soon, as well, so…" He smirked.

_What in the world was this guy talking about?!_

"Come to me, lowly beings!" he shouted into the air.

His whole body enveloped in lightning.

"Shango."

A ginormous bolt of lightning burst into the sky. It was too bright to even look at.

"What're you…?" Robin said.

He laughed manically and said," I invited your friends here, to Shandora!"

From down below, I could see a bunch of ruins and pieces of the ground falling down to us. He laughed again as all the pieces fell to the ground.

I covered my head, trying not to get hit.

"Let's start the finale!" he yelled amongst the crashes and booms of the broken fragments falling to the ground.

I almost fell over as the earth rumbled and shook beneath my feet.

When everything had fallen, Zoro uncovered himself from some fallen pieces while holding Chopper.

"Zoro-san!" I said.

"This is not my day!" he said.

"Don't tell me you fell with all these ruins…" Robin said.

"Dammit!" he yelled. "I almost died!"

"Yes, that's what happens to normal people," Robin said.

"Good thing you guys are safe," he said. "Where am I?"

"It's the city of gold we were looking for," she said.

"Doesn't look much different from the one that was up there," he said while walking closer to us. "So did you find the treasure?"

"No, there was no gold here," she explained.

"Is Chopper-san alright?" I asked, noticing he was carrying him in his arms.

"He's unconscious and wounded," Zoro said.

"Here," I said, holding out my arms. "Give him to me."

Zoro handed Chopper to me and I knelt down. I put my hands on Chopper's wounds and said, "Time Mend."

Slowly, but surely, his wounds started to close up.

"Whoa!" Zoro said. "Since when could you do that?!"

"Since yesterday," I said. "He'll be ok, but I don't know when he'll wake up."

A sudden crack of lightning made everyone look to the right. A giant snake was being fried.

"Nami's still in there!" Zoro yelled.

"Oh? Zoro? Robin? Maggie-chan?" Nami said, hiding behind some ruins nearby.

"You were there?!" Zoro asked. "When did you get out of that snake's stomach?!"

"Wait, what?" I asked.

"Well, I'm alright… but…" she said. "Luffy's still in there."

"He's such a pain in the ass!" Zoro yelled. "Why's he always like this?!"

"But lightning can't strike rubber…" I said. "Right?"

But they weren't listening to me.

Enel was in front behind me, talking to one of the Shandians named Wyper. I turned around, hearing his voice.

"The game isn't over yet," he said. "And those behind you are the participants."

I blinked a couple times.

Zoro had his swords out and Robin was walking towards him. Were they all crazy?! Even the Sky Knight was going towards him!

Nami pulled me behind the ruins and said, "Sh!" She was holding the unconscious Chopper as well.

"Welcome, splendid survivors!" he said. "I'm glad you made it this far. I'll praise you for that." He laughed, but no one said anything. "Well, I'm just having a little fun. The is a survival game to see how many people out of eighty-two, including me, are standing three hours after you all entered this island. There're participants who entered in the middle of the game, but I'm allowing that as well. My guess was that there'd be six survivors."

_But there're seven of us…_ I thought.

"In three minutes, it'll be three hours. In other words, it won't do if there're seven people here right now," he said.

_So he did notice us…_

"God's prophecy cannot fail, since he is absolute," Enel said. "Now… Who will die? will you fight each other? Or… shall I take care of it myself?"

Nami and I looked to each other, both scared.

"What do you wanna do?" Zoro asked.

"I'm not going to be the one," Robin said firmly.

"Me neither," he said.

"I won't accept that, either," said the Shandian, Wyper.

"I, too, firmly refuse," said the Sky Knight.

"So _you_ die!" they all said, pointing their assorted weapons at Enel.

_Phew… _I thought._ Good thing it's not gonna be us._

"How insolent…" Enel said, clearly agitated. He laughed at the thought. "You're telling me to die? Just listen to yourselves!" He laughed again, really amused at the possible thought of him dying.

"That guy is definitely dangerous," Nami whispered.

"Just what you'd expect from the game's survivors," he said. "However, it seems you don't realize who you're talking to. It seems you still don't understand the existence of god."

He started spouting nonsense about endless vearth and how that it was something only he could have.

"I will drag down every human from this sky!" he yelled passionately.

"You're planning to wipe out the nation?" the Sky Knight said.

"It's only natural…" Enel said.

_This guy has some serious ambition problems… _I thought to myself._ You can't just go around and destroy civilizations because you want to!_

"Don't be conceited!" the Sky Knight shouted. "The real god doesn't live in the human world!"

I heard my mom's voice in my head say, _That's true. This one is a false god. More like a devil than human or god._

"Mom…" I said.

_Why am I hearing her voice now? _I asked._ It's been years… Why now, of all times? Why now?!_

But while I was thinking, the Sky Knight was struck by lightning and was taken out.

"The Rumble-Rumble Fruit!" said Wyper.

"If I'm not mistaken, it's one that's said to be invincible!" Robin said. "The power of lightning!"

"Well, it's the time prophesied," Enel said. "Now… There are six! I'm glad you've survived! Now, I shall bring you along with me! To the dream world that I'm setting off to! To the Endless Vearth! I shall bring you along with me! There, I will build an indisputable Nation of God! The only ones who can live there are the chosen ones here."

"What's that guy talking about?" Nami asked.

"Those subordinates of mine, who couldn't even handle a short survival game, will only lower the nation's stature," Enel scoffed.

"And… What if we refuse?" Robin said bravely.

"Robin?" Nami asked. "What are you thinking?!"

"Refuse?" Enel asked, confused. "Why? It was decided by god. If you stay here, you'll fall into a bottomless pit with this nation."

"It's true that with your power, you can probably do that," she said. "But if you thoughtlessly destroy this nation, isn't the thing you want going to fall as well?"

"You mean the golden bell?" he asked. "You needn't worry. I already have some ideas. If I recall the actions you took, there is only one possible place. I'm pretty sure that I'm thinking of the same place you are." He paused. "Did you think you'd be able to outwit me by saying that? How foolish…"

I heard a crackle of lightning.

"I hate calculating women," Enel said.

But before I could do anything, it was too late.

"Robin-san!" I yelled, looking from behind the ruins.

She had already been defeated.

"No…" Nami said.

Zoro caught her before she could fall to the ground.

"Robin-san…" I said, shocked. (No pun intended.)

"She's a woman," Zoro said quietly, but with overflowing wrath in his voice.

"I can see that," Enel said nonchalantly.

Within seconds, he was running for Enel, too. I didn't want to look anymore. I hid back behind the ruins and blinked a couple times, trying to figure out what happened.

_He… he hurt Robin… _I thought._ And the rest of us are next…!_

Nami was freaking out, too.

"Oh, boy… We were about to set off to the endless vearth together," he said. "You don't have to get so blood-thirsty, you know."

"Who said we're coming with you?" Zoro asked.

_Now, Maggie. _I heard my mom's voice in my head._ Don't do anything rash, you hear me? Even though your Devil Fruit is stronger than his, you are not stronger than him. You will lose if you try to defeat him._

"Zoro! Don't, Zoro!" Nami screamed. "He's too strong!"

_I can't just sit back and watch my friends go down one after the other…_

I stood up and clenched my fists in anger.

_Maggie… _I heard my mom say._ Don't._

Wyper was the next to go.

Then, Zoro was gone.

Only Nami and I remained.

I had half a mind to try and fight him as well, but the other part of me was screaming to run far, far away.

Finally, my fight or flight sense was put to the ultimate test.

Enel was walking over to us with a bored expression on his face.

"You two are the only ones left," he said.

"I-" Nami was about to say.

"You're a horrible person…" I said.

Nami had a hand over my mouth before I could say anything else.

"She doesn't mean that!" Nami said.

I shook off her hand and looked Enel in the eyes. "You wannabe, false-god, murderer!" I shrieked with rage. "Why are you so selfish? Someone with your power should be using it for the benefit of those around you. Especially if you call yourself a god!"

"Annoying little brat…" he scoffed at me. "Die like your friends."

I knew that if I wasn't quick, I was going to die.

"Tick-Tock!" I screamed, jumping out of the way and landed on the ground on my side. As I looked back as the place where I was standing, the lightning was already inches above where my head would be.

"If I was a second later…" I said. "I would be toast…"

I gulped as I stood up and dusted myself off.

"Un-Tock," I said.

I shielded my eyes from the bright lightning.

"Oh?" he asked, looking intrigued. "What's this? A Devil Fruit?"

"Take a guess," I said.

"Speed?" he asked. "No, not speed…"

"Time," I said.

"No wonder you've made it this far in the game," he said.

"Two of the strongest Devil Fruits…" Nami said.

"However," Enel said. "A good Devil Fruit is a waste is the user is weak. It's the end of the line."

"Maggie-chan-"

I was toasted. Quite literally.

* * *

><p>"<em>I told you this would happen," my mother said.<em>

_I opened my eyes and saw her standing above me in the beautiful red dress she was wearing last time._

"_Mom…" I said._

"_I'm not saying what you did was wrong," she said. "False-gods are a nuisance, after all… But it was quite foolish."_

"_I… I just had to say something," I said._

_She smiled at me and said while embracing me, "I know, sweetie."_

"_So… Why do I come here whenever I'm unconscious?" I asked._

"_Because how else would you come to see me?" she asked. "But don't worry, you're not going to die or anything. In fact, your body is healing itself as we speak." She smiled and said, "Just like your mother… Well, it's time for you to wake up now!"_

"_Wait, Mom!" I said._

"_Everything's over now. The false-god is defeated." she said. "Bye bye!"_

* * *

><p>Even though I was with my mom for a couple minutes, I was out for about an hour.<p>

I woke up with the sound of a bell ringing.

I gasped as I sat up.

Usopp was cheering loudly in front of me.

"That bonehead did it!" he said.

There was another bong of the beautiful bell.

"I believed that this moment would come one day," the Sky Knight said.

Bong. Bong. Bong. Bong. Bong. Bong. Bong.

Everyone was speechless as we all stared up at the sky.

Enel had fallen. Luffy had won.

At least, that's what everyone told me.

"So now this is a city of gold only in name, eh?" Zoro said. "Guess our journey in poverty continues."

"Well, I'm more excited about the dials," Usopp said. "Since we don't have them back in the Blue Sea."

"In any case, I wonder if Nami-san's alright…" Sanji said worriedly.

"OIIIIIIIII!" Luffy called. He was carrying a huge back behind him. Conis and Nami followed after him.

"Luffy!" Usopp said.

"Luffy-san!" I said.

Once everyone reached us, Conis started crying and said she was so thankful we were all ok.

"Is that food, you guys?" Zoro asked, inquiring about the gigantic bag Luffy had dragged all the way here. "Where'd you get it?"

"We found the priests' food storage on our way back through the forest!" Nami said.

"There were more!" Luffy said, chewing on a half-eaten bone.

"How did you get down from that height?" Usopp asked.

"Gum-Gum Balloon!" he said, through a peace sign.

"By the way, Conis," Zoro said. "Where's your old man."

She looked to the floor, obviously sad about something. "Well, he protected me… and then… Enel…"

"Don't tell me…" Chopper said.

"Conis-san…" said her father. "I'm still alive! I'm sorry!"

Conis burst into tears and hugged her father.

_Aww~ _I thought. _How touching!_

He explained how he survived and everyone was super happy he was ok.

Everyone turned out fine in the end. Luffy proposed a giant party. The Skypieans and the Shandians joined us that night with a huge bonfire in the ruins. Even the giant snake showed up for the party!

Everyone danced and ate until they collapsed.

I was woken up in the middle of the night by Luffy and Nami arguing about something. And so was everyone else.

Then once everyone was awake, Luffy whispered us a plan. Well, it wasn't much of a plan…

"We're gonna steal the gold and run!" he hissed quietly.

Everyone smiled deviously.

We just needed to find our chance to steal the gold.

* * *

><p>Luffy's idea of stealing the gold was a little bit more dangerous than I was anticipating.<p>

"We just gotta climb into the snake's stomach and get all the gold and then get out before it wakes up!" he said.

Needless to say, I decided to sit this one out. But most everyone else was on board. They actually went inside the snake's mouth to get the gold.

Usopp negotiated with some of the Skypieans to get some dials in exchange for iron and rubber bands.

Robin went to go help with the bell and Zoro was training somewhere.

Well, eventually Luffy, Chopper, Sanji, and Nami came out of the snake with gold to spare, but Robin still hadn't returned yet.

When Robin finally did get back, she was being followed by a bunch of Skypieans and Shandians who were all carrying something huge wrapped with clothes.

"This is bad! This is bad!" Usopp said, freaking out.

"What?" I asked. "What's wrong?"

"It's a huge cannon!" he screamed.

I gasped. "Do they know they know we stole the gold?!" I asked.

"Hurry to the ship!" Luffy shouted. "We can no longer stay here!"

We all started scurrying to the ship as fast as we could. Once everyone was on the ship, Conis and her father showed us the way to Cloud End.

I was a little sad to leave so soon, but if they didn't want us there, then we shouldn't intrude.

When we reached Cloud End, Conis and Pagaya said goodbye.

"Well then, everyone! I'm sorry! We'll say goodbye here!" Pagaya said, waving after us.

"Take care, everyone!" Conis called after us.

"Thanks for seeing us off!" Nami called.

"Bye, Conis-san! Bye Pagaya-san!" I waved goodbye.

"See you!" Chopper yelled.

Everyone else said goodbye to them as well.

"Thanks for everything!" Luffy said to our friends.

"No, thank you!" Conis said. "We'll never forget you all!"

"Furl your sail sand hold on tight to the ship!" Pagaya suggested.

We were nearing the Cloud End.

For extra precautions, I handcuffed myself to the railings as well as held on for my life.

All the guys rushed to furl the sails. We were about to drop 7,000 meters back into the Grand Line!

All of a sudden, Ronnie flew back and trampled over Luffy, cawing loudly.

"'Don't forget about me!' he said," Chopper translated.

"Ronnie-kun!" I said, holding out my free arm. I swear Ronnie smiled at me and perched on the railing next to me.

"Now, Captain!" Nami said. "We got the log for the next island."

"Yeah! Once we get off from here, we'll start on a new adventure again!" Luffy said.

I hung onto the railing, seeing that the water stopped a couple meters in front of us.

"Guys!" Luffy yelled. "You ready?!"

"No…" I said. My stomach lurched at the thought of falling from so high.

"We're gonna go back to the Blue Sea!" he yelled.

The ship tipped over the edge…

It was a completely horrible experience, to be honest. It felt like my stomach was trying to crawl out of my mouth for the longest time, but then we everything became so much slower.

I looked up and saw that a giant octopus was slowing our decent.

I sighed in relief as my stomach calmed down.

"Phew…" I said.

Bong. Bong…

_Is that the bell? _I wondered.

Everyone thought so too. The Skypieans were sending us off with the sound of the beautiful bell!

"This is so cool!" Luffy said.

"Yeah!" Usopp agreed.

We were floating gently down towards the Blue Sea. If things kept up, I would uncuff myself, but just in case, I didn't want to take any chances. Something could happen to the octopus, you never really know!

As an hour passed, I figured it was enough time so I uncuffed myself from the railing.

But that's when Nami let out a huge shriek.

"What's wrong?" Luffy asked.

"We got on an air current! As it stands, we don't know where on the sea we'll land!" she said.

My eyes widened. "That seems like a big problem…" I said.

"What're we gonna do?" she asked. "In this state, I can't set the sails and control the ship…"

"We'll just head back to the next island once we reach the sea!" Luffy said nonchalantly. "Don't worry!"

Nami sighed.

"Wait…" Sanji said.

"What is it?" Nami asked.

"No, it's nothing…" he said.

* * *

><p>When the sun was almost set, no one knew how much longer we had until we landed.<p>

"I'm so worried about how far the ship will drift…" Nami said.

Usopp laughed and said, "It's be quick and easy if we drifted to Raftel, wouldn't it?"

But Robin shot that down before it had the chance to sail. And Luffy started jumping on the top of the balloon.

"Luffy, stop!" Sanji yelled. "You're blowing the air out of the balloon! We'll fall!"

He physically had to climb up to the top of the octopus and grab Luffy off of it. They almost fell off, but luckily Luffy is a rubber man.

Luffy laughed as he was hanging over the side of the railing while hanging onto Sanji's leg.

"That was quite a scare!" he said. "But why did it stop being bouncy?"

"The octopus is shrinking, idiot!" Sanji yelled.

All of a sudden, we started floating.

"W-what?!" Luffy said. I looked up and he was at the railing with Sanji. "I dind't do anything! But we're back on the ship!"

Usopp started screaming. "WE'RE FALLING!" he shrieked.

We all started screaming. I couldn't hear anything over the sound of the rushing wind.

But we suddenly slowed down again.

Usopp put all the breath dials he had on the bottom of the ship to slow it down.

For a moment, we all relaxed.

But then, the octopus shrunk to normal size.

"AHHHHHHHHHHH!" we all screamed.

"Tick-Tock!" I yelled.

As I stopped time, I made sure everyone had a good grip on the ship and then handcuffed myself to the railing before saying, "Un-Tock!"

We landed with huge force, but we were all ok. When everyone was relaxed, Ronnie flew away and Sanji said he was going to make some coffee.

I sighed and looked up into the sky.

"That was so cool!" I said.

I looked around in my bag to find the key to unlock myself from the railing. Everyone had already gone into the kitchen.

I felt around in my bag a while, looking for the key. Finally I craned my neck to look inside the bag.

"That's funny…" I said.

I dumped out the contents onto my lap and only my sheathed dagger came out.

I sucked in air at the realization.

"No…" I said. "How did I lose the key?!"

But before I could panic even more, search lights were being turned on directly on the ship.

"What?" I said, looking around.

An alarm started blaring.

_Where on earth did we just land?!_

I heard a couple splashes and craned my neck to see over the railing. Everyone had jumped in the water.

I struggled, trying to break the handcuff chain, but I wasn't strong enough!

Did they know I was still on board?!

A million things were going through my mind in that moment.

But then, my mother's voice washed over my thoughts.

"Sleep…" she said.

"How can I sleep at a time like-"

And I was unconscious.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong>

**WE MADE IT THROUGH SKYPIEA! WOOHOO!**

**Ok, changing things up a bit here! Going with the filler arc because I actually happen to really like this arc. Also, it ties in with something I have planned for Maggie before Water 7.**

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	29. My Worst Nightmare

I woke up, but didn't open my eyes, to a girl-ish scream.

"T-there's someone still on board!" it was a man.

"It's a girl!" said another one.

I felt someone poke my face.

Click!

Someone took a picture.

"Is she dead…?" the first one asked.

Poke! Poke! Click! Click!

I opened my eyes and saw the feet of a dozen or so men around me.

"Well, it's not a ghost ship anymore," one of them said.

I gulped and looked up.

Uniforms everywhere…

They were marines. We'd fallen into a marine base!

I completely forgot about being bound to the railing and tried to run, only to be jerked back by the handcuffs.

"Commander Johnathan!" one of the marines yelled.

"Yes?" said the commander, walking over.

I looked at the commander, recognizing his name. I gasped and saw one of my dad's old friends.

_No… _I thought._ Please let this be a dream!_

He recognized me too, apparently.

"Oh, Magnolia! Long time, no see!" he said.

"Sir… Do you know her…?" asked one of the marines.

"Yeah!" he said. "I know her father. He's one of the vice admirals, too."

_Vice admiral…?_ I thought.

In all the years I spent with my father, I never knew what rank in the Navy he was… But vice admiral?!

"How did you get cuffed to the railing of the Straw Hat's ship?" he asked. "Never mind that now… Someone, get her loose, please."

One of the marines pried off the handcuffs and tossed them into the water.

"Get me some Sea Prism Stone handcuffs," he said.

And within seconds, I was cuffed again. But this time, they were Sea Prism Stone ones. I couldn't escape!

"Come on, we'll talk in my office," he said, leading me to the railing where one of the rope ladders were.

I looked around desperately, hoping Luffy or anyone else would come to rescue me from the marines, but there was no one.

I struggled down the rope ladder and into the commander's boat where two of the regular marines rowed us back to the base.

_Why did I have to handcuff myself to the railing?! _I thought, mentally slapping myself.

* * *

><p>I was dropped off in Commander Johnathan's office, but he didn't follow me in. Since our ship dropped and everyone else was missing, the marines were frantically trying to find everyone.<p>

I was told to wait there and not leave 'or else.'

So in one of the chairs in his room, I curled up and tried to think of a way to escape.

_But if this place is crawling with marines… How can I get away? What if they call my dad to pick me up?_

The thought of my dad coming made me shiver.

_No… No… That definitely won't happen_! I thought._ But… what if it does…?_

"Mom…" I cried in my knees. "Get me out of here…!"

I fell asleep in the chair, mentally and physically exhausted. The Sea Prism Stones are very taxing, you know.

* * *

><p>I woke up at about six in the morning, but only listened to what was happening around me.<p>

Even still at the early hour, soldiers were coming in and out with reports.

When the one reporting finally left, I opened my eyes.

I saw that the Lt. Commander as well as Commander Johnathan were still in the room.

"Ah, Magnolia!" Commander Johnathan said, seeing that I was awake. "Do you mind if I ask you a few questions?"

I nodded my head and said, "Yes, I do mind."

He laughed heartily and said, "Well, that's too bad." He sat down in his desk's chair. The Lt. Commander stood behind him with a cold glare fixed on my face. "First, I'd like to ask you why you were handcuffed to the railing. Are you being held captive?"

I didn't reply and looked away.

"Come on, we need to know the whole story," he persisted.

I didn't say anything again.

"Well, this isn't going to get us anywhere…" he said. "Never mind, then. I think I'll go fishing."

"But, sir!" said the Lt. Commander. "What should we do about her?"

"Oh, just leave her," he said. "Her father will be here soon."

He walked out of the room and the Lt. Commander followed him.

"Wait, what?" I asked.

The Commander stopped at the door.

"I called your father," he said. He shut the door.

"No…" I said, eyes wide with fright. "No! I don't want to go back…"

While the Commander was gone for a couple hours, I was completely panicking.

_They called Dad! _I thought._ How soon… is 'soon'? Within in the hour? Within the day? The week?_

I looked at my bindings and thought that if only I could get them off I could escape this horrible place and find everyone else in time to get away.

"If only I could find a key…" I said.

I looked to his desk and stood up.

But as I did, the door opened and Commander Johnathan walked in.

I let out a small shriek and sat back down in the chair.

But the Commander didn't pay any attention to me. He went straight to his desk and put a chess piece on the board on his desk.

"Six more," he said, thinking deeply. He looked up at his Lt. Commander and said, "One of the Straw Hat Pirates, Roronoa Zoro… Shall we try questioning him, Drake?"

"What?" I asked.

"But you told us to check the dining hall, Commander," said the Lt. Commander Drake.

"I did?" Johnathan asked.

"You said that everyone gets hungry, so they're likely to appear in the dining hall," Drake said.

"Then, I'll go to the dining hall," he said. "Jessica told me that new cooks from headquarters are coming as well…" He got up.

"How should we proceed with questioning Zoro?" Drake asked.

"I'll leave it to you," he said. He walked over to me and said, "Now, you must be hungry, Magnolia. Care to join me for a meal?"

But it wasn't a question. He held out his hand for me to take and led me out of the room.

"Umm…" I said.

"Yes?" he asked.

"You said…" I said hesitantly. "Zoro-san… You said you caught him?"

"That's right," he said.

I bit my lip.

_Zoro! Why did you get captured?!_

He opened the doors to the dining hall, except no one else was inside. He led me into a private room and pulled up a chair for me.

A woman chef came into and presented us our meals.

"Here you go," she said.

"Jessica…" Johnathan said. "This is your usual dish, right?"

"Any problem, Commander?" she asked.

"Well, my men are carrying on about the incredibly delicious food prepared by the cooks from Marie Jois. So I came here looking forward to it…"

"You don't like it? When I, the executive chief chef, cooked it for you myself?" she asked. "You can't continue to eat the same kind of food as the younger ones, right? It's healthy and filled with lots of love. Bon appetit!"

"But I don't like broccoli and carrots!" he said.

_He's acting like a child… _I thought._ And I'm one to talk!_

"Branch 8's second motto?" she asked.

Hesitantly, he took a bite of the carrots he so despised.

"I'll bring you something else," she said, walking out of the room.

He looked to me, noticing I wasn't touching any of my food.

"Aren't you hungry at all?" he asked.

I shook my head. "No, I'm alright."

All of a sudden, Luffy burst through the doors wearing a cook's uniform and said, "Here ya go!"

My eyes widened as I saw him.

"L-L-" I stuttered.

But I stopped myself.

"Thanks," Johnathan said. "You can go now."

"Aye, aye, sir!" he said, backing up.

I couldn't breathe.

He didn't leave the room yet.

"This is great!" Johnathan said, taking a bit.

I saw Luffy's arm stretch and grab a piece off of the plate.

I blinked.

_What the heck is he thinking?!_

"Yeah, it is good!" Luffy agreed.

He grabbed more. And more.

Soon, he grabbed onto the one that Johnathan was about to eat.

"Oi!" he yelled. "Let me have some!"

"You certainly live up to my expectations!" Johnathan said, fighting over the piece.

Luffy won the piece of meat and flew back into the door.

Johnathan stood up and said, "Welcome, Straw Hat Luffy. I am Johnathan, the commander of Navarone, Branch G8."

"Luffy-san…" I said.

"Maggie?!" he asked, finally noticing me. "What're you doing here?!"

"Straw Hat, I don't wanna get violent in the dining hall. So, answer me one question?"

"Can I eat half of that stuff if I do?" he asked.

"You can eat it all," he said.

"Then I'll take it!" he said, stretching his arm to get the plates on the table.

"No matter how hard I think, I can't figure out your purpose," Johnathan said. "Right… It said that Captain Smoker is the one who defeated Crocodile. It's not as if you gained reputation in Alabasta, or even money. What would someone like that want from us? What did you come to this fortress for?"

"We fell here from the sky and just happened to land here," Luffy said. "The Grand Line really is an interesting place."

Johnathan laughed. "Even if you got the power of a Devil Fruit, it's impossible to escape Navarone without some sort of miracle."

"I'll leave when I want to," Luffy said.

"Even after you hear that Roronoa Zoro was captured? Or that Magnolia is going back to her father?" he countered.

Luffy looked taken aback. He stood up and said, "Where's Zoro?"

"And if I tell you?"

"What else? I'm gonna go rescue him right away!" he yelled.

"You don't have to be so hasty. We'll take you to the same place soon," Johnathan said.

"Luffy-san!" I said. "Run! Go right now-"

Sanji burst through the doors and Luffy's hand grabbed my arm. I was pulled out of the room only to be stopped by all the cooks staring at us.

"Little did I know you were Straw Hats!" said Jessica. "Your skills are too good for a pirate."

I clenched my fists in anger.

_If only I didn't have these Sea Prism Stone handcuffs…_

Johnathan burst through the door to the room we just came out of.

We were surrounded!

Then, hungry soldiers flooded the place and caused much confusion.

I felt a strong hand on my shoulder and looked up to see Johnathan.

_Dang it! I can't escape…_

* * *

><p>Usopp was brought into the Commander's room later that day dressed in marine's clothing.<p>

"He insists he's a marine, but the circumstantial evidence clearly indicates that he's one of the Straw Hats," Drake said to Johnathan.

"Magnolia," Johnathan said. "Do you recognize him?"

Usopp lifted up his head and locked eyes with me.

"I've never seen him before," I said.

"She's lying!" Drake accused. "Imprison them both. She's obviously in leagues with the Straw Hats!"

"Can't do that, Drake," he said. "Her father wants her back."

Then, a soldier came in and announced that Inspector Major Shepherd had arrived from Navy Headquarters.

But when I expected to see an actual inspector, Robin came through wearing a navy coat and sunglasses.

"Nice to meet you, Commander Johnathan," she said coolly.

I saw her look to both me and Usopp.

"Major!" Usopp said, trying to talk his way out of this. "Don't you remember me? I'm from the inspector division!"

"Who are you?" she asked.

They took Usopp away.

_Robin… Why…?_

"Now I'll start investigating Navarone, ok?" she said.

"Please be my guest!" Johnathan said. "We welcome you, Major Shepherd."

"Thank you very much," she said, smirking.

* * *

><p>Johnathan had his chess board out again that night, but he added on pieces.<p>

"Straw Hat and a very skilled cook…" he said. "A swordsman and a man with a long nose… A doctor and nurse we've never seen before… And one more… A woman who calls herself Major Shepherd. That makes seven people… Now it makes sense."

_He knows its Robin?!_

"We've already captured the ship and two of them," he said. "Well, excluding Magnolia… The rest of the Straw Hats are within my hands."

_No… No… We can't go down in a place like this!_

"So, what will you do now, Monkey D. Luffy?" Johnathan asked. "I'll just sit back and see what you can do…"

I bit my lip. _This guys is too smart… Can we really escape?_

"Oh, Magnolia," he said. "You're probably wondering when your father will get here. Worry not; he'll be here tomorrow night. At nine."

I gulped.

_We have to escape before then…!_

* * *

><p>I woke up to the sound of a transponder snail ringing.<p>

I opened my eyes and looked at Johnathan who was answering the phone.

"Hello?" he asked.

"_Reporting, sir!_" said the soldier on the other line. "_The one we captured earlier turned out to be a Straw Hat member whose name is Condoriano._"

"Condoriano?" Johnathan asked.

"_Yes, sir!_" the other said. "_He insists that he's Major Shepherd… but we think that it's clearly a lie._"

_Who's Condoriano…?_ I asked.

"Ok, thanks," Johnathan said, hanging up the phone.

He sat back down at his desk and thought for a while.

I was too stressed to even think.

My dad was coming that night, so if we couldn't escape before then, I wouldn't ever see my friends again!

Time seemed to fly fast. Before I knew it, it was almost one in the afternoon and the alarm was blaring throughout the base.

The transponder snail rung immediately.

"Hello?" Johnathan asked.

"_Commander!_" said the one on the other line. "_I'm sorry! I failed to catch Straw Hat!_"

I almost jumped for joy.

"What about the other members? Are Roronoa and the others with him?!" he asked.

"_Yes_," he said. "_Uh, well… Witnesses told me that they didn't see Condoriano with the others._"

"I see," Johnathan said, chuckling. "Lt. Commander, the bridge is guarded, right?"

"_Yes, sir!_" Drake said.

"Good! Well, don't be so discouraged," he said. He turned to me and said, "We'll still have many opportunities to catch them."

I gulped…

_What is he planning…?_

But then, I got an idea! I had to get away from this guy.

"Excuse me," I said.

"Yes?" he asked.

"May I go to the bathroom?" I asked. It was the oldest trick in the book.

"Hm?" he asked. "Now?"

I nodded.

He sighed and said, "Alright…"

He opened the doors and led me down the hall to one of the bathrooms.

I held up my bonds and looked up at him with pleading eyes.

He sighed again and reached into his pocket for the key.

"Don't try anything, alright?" he said, unlocking my handcuffs.

As soon as they were off, I smiled and said thank you.

"Tick-Tock…" I whispered.

I ran as fast as I could down the halls.

_The bridge! The bridge! That's where he said they'd go!_

I looked out one of the windows and saw a red iron bridge. It didn't look very far from where I was, so I kept running.

As I ran, I massaged my wrists and saw that they looked pretty irritated.

But I accidentally ran into the Lt. Commander and his men and lost my focus. I accidentally started time again!

"Ow…" I said, falling on my bottom.

"You…" Drake said, eyeing me. "Men! Go after the Straw Hats!"

"Yes, sir!" they all yelled, running away.

"You're coming with me," he said, taking my wrist in his hand forcefully.

_I've been caught… There's no hope. I'll never see my friends again…_

He shoved me back to Commander Johnathan's office and said, "Look who I ran into!"

"Actually, I ran into you…" I said.

He slapped the Sea Prism Stone Handcuffs back on my already agitated wrists and sighed. "That really was the oldest trick in the book!" Johnathan said. "And I thought we were friends… Thank you, Drake."

Lt. Commander Drake saluted Johnathan and left the room.

Johnathan went outside on the balcony. There was a soldier beside him.

I heard some distant yelling. The soldier ran out to the balcony and said, "Those are the Straw Hats!"

That got my attention.

"What?" I asked.

"So you've finally shown yourself, Straw Hat?" Johnathan said.

"Old fortress guy! What're you doing there?" It was Luffy!

I ran out onto the balcony, but Johnathan blocked his view of me.

"This _is_ my room," he said.

The soldier ran back inside and shouted into the transponder snail to fire the cannons.

"Whadya think?!" Luffy said. "I rescued my crew!"

"Hm?" he asked.

"I told you, I'll leave when I wanna leave!" he said.

"So do you want to leave now?" Johnathan asked.

"Yeah, we're gonna leave now," he said.

"Without your youngest member?" Johnathan asked. "Tsk. Tsk. Seems you've forgotten Magnolia, here."

"Luffy-san!" I yelled.

"Magnolia-chan?!" It was Sanji's voice.

I was really confused, why did they forget me?

"Maggie!" he said, seeing me. "What're you doing up there? The party's down here!"

I was about to run out of the room again, the soldier blocked me.

Johnathan laughed. "Think you can escape from Navarone? No… From me?" he asked.

I heard the sound of cannon fire.

"No!" I shrieked.

"They got away…" Johnathan said when the smoke cleared. He facepalmed and shook his head. "Your friends are really sneaky, eh?"

"Commander!" the soldier said. "Unit 21 is currently in Block 7, ready to ambush them! This is our chance to drive them there and take them all out at once!"

I was horrified. _Are they going to come for me?_

"Have the men withdraw from Block 7, Johnathan said. "The Straw Hats don't play by the book. Never underestimate someone with a 100 million-Berry bounty. A proper fight would result in significant injuries to the soldiers. There's no point in needless casualties or destroying our own base."

"Yes, sir!" the soldier said.

"They will, without fail, do two things," Johnathan deduced. "Head for the dock to retrieve their ship and come to rescue Magnolia. Let's have a counterattack waiting for the pirates at Dock 88."

As they started proposing countermeasures, I started thinking of a way to escape.

_No, the bathroom excuse won't work again… Think, Magnolia, think!_

I started banging the handcuffs on the edge of the table.

"It's no use, Magnolia," Johnathan said. "They're sturdier than they look."

"I won't… go back!" I said, repeatedly banging them against the table. "Tick-Tock! Tick-Tock! Tick-Tock… Tick-Tock…"

I burst into tears.

"I can't go back…" I whimpered.

But as I looked around, everyone was frozen.

"What…?" I said.

I blinked the tears out of my eyes. I looked to my hands and saw that the handcuffs had fallen off.

"What?" I asked. "How did…?"

_Go, Maggie. Go, now._ my mom said in my head.

I didn't even question it. I raced to my feet and sprinted out of the room.

_Where do I go? Where do I go?! I know, Dock 88, but where is that?!_

_Go right! _my mom said._ Then a left, go down the stairs, a right, and another right. Cross the bridge, down the stairs, left, right, another right, and you'll be there. Go, Maggie!_

I started time again and followed her directions exactly. I skidded to a halt when I saw that my friends were surrounded by marines.

Nami and some other girl were screaming that they were hostages, but I knew she was lying.

_Should I… act? _I thought. _What the heck…_

I screamed while running to hug Nami. She looked down and saw me. I flipped up my eye patch so I could wink at her and flipped it down again.

"There!" Lt. Commander Drake said. "I've withdrawn my men."

"I'm not letting them go until we escape!" Chopper yelled in a deep voice, using Heavy Point.

"I give in to your demands! Get onto your ship!" he yelled back.

"Good sport, but is he telling the truth?" Zoro asked.

All of the hundreds of soldiers made way for us to get on the _Merry_. I tried to look as scared as I could while we walked by them.

It was deadly silent while we walked towards our ship.

"Oi, guys," Zoro whispered. "Run on my signal."

"Why can't I just get us there now?" I asked.

"Can you?" he asked.

I nodded. I closed my eyes, but kept walking. "Tick-Tock!" I whispered. "Nami-san, Chopper-san, Sanji-san, Zoro-san, Usopp-san, Luffy-san!"

Everyone looked at me, while everything else was frozen.

"Whoa, this is so cool!" Nami said.

"Ok, everyone run to the ship!" Zoro yelled.

Everyone started sprinting to the ship.

But thankfully, as we all got on board, I had to stop. I was so exhausted.

Within seconds of me letting time start again, the ship was lurched into the watch.

"What?" everyone asked.

"Don't let them escape! All squadrons, open fire!" Drake yelled.

I couldn't even tell what happen, but for now, it seemed we had escaped successfully.

"Chopper-san," I said, trying to sit up.

He rushed over. "Yes?" he asked. "Something wrong, Magnolia?"

"My wrists…" I said.

Through my shirt, I could see the blood pooling up.

"I'll treat them right away!" he said, taking off his backpack. Once he'd wrapped them with bandages and cleaned them out, Nami ordered him into the kitchen to steer the ship exactly according to her directions.

We were being constantly fired at by that point.

But then, Luffy deflected a bunch of cannon balls and opened up the Sea Gate. We were home-free!

That is, until Nami shrieked in realization.

"THE TREASURE IS GONE!" she screeched.

* * *

><p>Nami absolutely refused to leave without the gold.<p>

I was beginning to get extremely nervous. It was the middle of the afternoon. If we didn't hurry, my dad would come before we could leave.

We hid the _Merry_ in one of the old, unused docks.

Nami called a strategy meeting in the kitchen. I didn't notice, but apparently Robin had shown up with a map of the base a while ago.

"Do you really think it's ok to go without the gold?" Nami asked.

Everyone nodded.

"What a shame…" she said. "Obviously, it would've been divided up… With all that treasure, we would've had a ton…"

That got everyone's attention.

In the midst of everyone saying what they wanted to get with their money, I had to say something…

"Um…" I said. "If it counts at all, I'd like to leave."

"Why?" Nami asked. "What about the gold? We could use it to repair the ship."

"The gold is not my first priority right now, Nami-chan," I said.

All eyes looked to me, wondering what I had to say.

"Commander Johnathan… He… He called my father," I said. "He said he'd be here tonight… If we escape before then, maybe we could miss him!"

"But if we could repair the ship…" Usopp said.

"Ah, not like the decision is up to me, or anything!" I said, sheepishly. "I was just trying to voice my opinion… Well, never mind! It doesn't matter, anyway! Ahahaha…" I put my head down in shame. "I shouldn't have said anything…"

"Well, I guess it's settled, then," Nami said. "We'll hold off splitting the treasure until we fix the _Merry_."

Sanji set some food on the plate.

"Usopp's cheap repairs are just about at their limit," Zoro said.

"I'll have you know that I'm a sniper!" he said defensively.

Everyone was really excited at the idea of getting the _Merry_ fixed.

I was, too, but I had a nagging feeling in the back of my head that no one really listened to my opinion.

As I nibbled on one of the sandwiches, I thought, _Please, don't come, Dad!_

So it was decided that we should get a shipwright. But before all that, we needed to get our gold back.

Usopp and everyone else (but mostly Usopp) started building a disguise for the _Merry_. He made her look like one of the navy's ships so it wouldn't be spotted that easily.

He finished it that night, when I was most on edge.

"Alright, let's get our gold back!" Nami said. "Everyone, we commence tonight at midnight! Got that?!"

"Yeah!" they all said.

I was a walking ball of anxiety by that point.

"C-can I w-wait by the… the… the um… the ship?" I asked. "I mean… on the ship?"

"Yeah sure," Nami said. "Are you tired or something?"

"Y-yeah!" I said. "You know… Sea Prism Stones still have a little after effects…!"

"You'll be ok alone, though, right?" she asked. "We need everyone else for my plan."

"Yeah," I said. "I'll be fine!"

They left Chopper with me while they embarked on their own missions.

I went straight to the girl's dorm and crashed from exhaustion.

* * *

><p>"<em>Oi, Magnolia," I heard a voice say. A strong hand shook me awake. "Magnolia, get up. We're leaving this instant."<em>

_I opened my eyes groggily and blinked as my vision became clearer and clearer._

_My father stood above me._

_I screamed and tried to get far away from him, but his hand held me back._

"_No, I'm not going with you!" I yelled._

"_You have nowhere else to go," he said. "We've already captured the Straw Hats."_

"_You… what?" I asked. Tears started streaming down my face._

"_Let's go, Magnolia!" he yelled at me. "You'll never leave me ever again!"_

I woke up sweating.

"It's just a dream…" I said to myself, still trembling. "It was only a dream."

It was morning, I could see. As I went up the stairs, I ran into Nami.

"Oh, Maggie-chan! You're awake! I was just about to come get you for breakfast," she said.

I smiled and said, "It's ready, then?"

"Yep," she said. "We'll tell you all that happened!"

I nodded and said, "Great!"

* * *

><p>I figured out not long after they delved into telling me the story of what happened that Johnathan had bluffed. He really hadn't called my father.<p>

How I knew: supposedly at nine, the tide in the base was so low, it was unsailable. And nine was the time that my dad was supposed to arrive. No way he could sail a ship in that low of a tide!

I took a deep breath and knew that all of my worries were over.

At least, for that moment.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong>

**I have pre-written the next three chapters… So you know what that means! Fast updates! Woohoo!**

**So, I decided to completely skip the next filler arc because I think Foxy is super annoying and a discount Maggie, but hey. That's my opinion. But… I do have something very exciting to announce!**

**MAGGIE'S ARC IS NEXT! :D**

***queue pterodactyl screeches***

**I know, I'm figuratively exploding with excitement. Be prepared to be punched in the feels, I know I was.**

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	30. I'm Wanted

**Author's Note:**

**Well, I am pleased to announce that this is the first chapter of Maggie's arc! Been long enough, I'll say. I've been planning this one for a while because it's marking some big changes in Maggie's life. So after some thinking, I named this arc Pandora's Box. **

**I've only pre-written the first three chapters of this... So... I know how it's going to end, but I haven't actually written anything down regarding the 'finale'.**

**Well, here goes nothing...**

**Enjoy~**

**OH, AND ALSO, YOU GUYS ROCK! I HIT 100 REVIEWS TODAY AND I CAN'T THANK Y'ALL ENOUGH! :D**

* * *

><p>"I see it, I see it!" I yelled from the crow's nest a couple days after the G8 incident. "There's the island!"<p>

"Yahoo!" Luffy said. "A new island! I wonder if they have good restaurants!"

"Is food all you think about?" Usopp asked.

"Who knows?" Luffy replied.

As we neared the island, I began to get a feeling of anxiety, like something bad was about to happen. As I looked to the island, it seemed quaint as ever. I brushed off my gut feeling and climbed down the rope ladder like nothing was wrong.

"Ok," Nami said. "This is going to be the one and only island that we don't cause trouble on, is that clear?" She glared at Luffy. "Is that clear, Luffy?" she asked again, holding up her fist threateningly.

He scowled and said, "But I wanna go on an adventure!"

"It would be nice not to have something crazy happen for once," Usopp said.

"Yeah," I agreed.

"But since this island looks populated, that means they'll have the newspaper, and if they have the newspaper, that means they have wanted posters," Nami said. "Zoro, Luffy. You're not allowed to leave the ship."

"Whatever," Zoro's said. "I'll just take a nap. Be sure to get some good sake while you're out." He fell asleep almost immediately.

Luffy's mouth literally dropped to the floor. "What if there are barbeque restaurants, Nami?!"

"You're being a bit harsh on him, miss navigator," Robin said.

"Well, it's not like he has the best track record!" she said. "We're going to stock up and then leave. No drama whatsoever, got it everyone?"

"Yes, ma'am," we all replied robotically.

Nami was even more stern than usual. I guess she just really wanted a break.

We docked away from the major port to avoid attention. As Nami told Zoro and Luffy to stay on the ship, I fetched the rope ladder and hooked it onto the railing of the _Merry_. I was the first to descend onto the new island.

I was followed by Nami, Robin, Chopper, Sanji, and Usopp.

Nami stretched her arms into the air and took a deep breath. "Smell that?" she asked. "That's the smell of a drama-free island!"

Robin laughed and said, "It seems that way."

"Even thought I would rather go with Nami-san, Robin-chan, and Magnolia-chan… We need to get some more food, right?" Sanji said.

"Yep," Nami replied. "Speaking of which…" She gave Sanji some money for supplies and told Usopp to go with him. (This wasn't the money from the gold. We still hadn't cashed that in yet.) "We're going shopping!" she said.

Robin really liked that idea. Chopper sighed. He was going to be dragged along with us.

"You can go with Sanji if you want too," Nami suggested.

Chopper smiled and chased after them, yelling "Thank you, Nami!"

"You're quite the tyrant today," Robin remarked.

She sighed and said, "Well, a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do."

"If we're going shopping, let's stop by a bookstore as well," Robin suggested.

"Oh! Yes, that'd be awesome!" I said.

As we walked closer to the town gate, the sign above it said Amber Island. It really was a quaint town. Colorful shops lined the cobblestone streets and notice boards could be seen on almost every wall possible.

"So many signs…" I said.

"I wonder what they all say," Robin inquired.

We walked up to one of the notice boards and Nami read, "Missing children… They're all missing children from around the area."

"That's sad…" I said. "I wonder why there're so many."

"Oh, there's a clothing store!" Nami said, pointing down the road. "Let's go inside!"

We started walking down the street and passed by many people who were going about their daily lives with smiles on their faces.

As we passed one of the notice boards, I could've sworn I saw Luffy's wanted poster.

_Maybe they have signs for wanted posters as well… _I thought.

But as we walked by even more, it seemed as though they were all missing child posters and only that one was for pirates.

We shopped around for a while, trying on this and that, but buying very little. Most of the clothes weren't our style, I guess. I was already content with my clothes that I had on, so I just tagged along as Robin and Nami shopped for real.

When we finally made it into a book store, I began on the hunt for some fairy tale books. As I searched the shelves in the children's section, one of the employees came up to me.

"Would you like any help, miss?" he asked. It was a very tall man with a pointed nose and a receding hair line.

"Do you have any books on fairy tales?" I asked.

"That would be over there, miss," he said. "Follow me."

I felt like he looked at me funny, but I was probably just imagining things. He walked me over to the shelf where the books on fairy tales were.

"Thank you," I said.

"No problem," he said, walking away. He looked back at me as he walked away.

As I pulled down one of the books off the shelf, the people in the aisle were staring at me as well. I began to get a little self-conscious.

_Is it my eye patch? Do I have something on my face? _I wondered._ Why are they all staring at me?!_

I tried to ignore it, but when people started whispering to each other, I went to go find Robin.

Both Nami and Robin were in the history section. Robin closed the book she was reading and looked at me.

"Find anything you like?" she asked, smiling at me.

"Robin-san… People were whispering and staring…" I said quietly.

"Are you sure?" she asked. "Was it just your imagination?"

"No, they were looking at me…" I said.

She smiled and said, "Maybe they think you're pretty."

I sighed and said, "I doubt it."

"What's wrong?" Nami asked.

"Our little watchman seems to think people are staring and whispering about her," Robin explained.

Nami laughed and said, "Relax! Don't be so paranoid, Maggie-chan. This is a drama-free island, remember?"

"Yeah, you're right…" I said. "I'm probably being ridiculous… Sorry."

"We'll meet up with Sanji and the others in a little while," Nami said. "Just try to enjoy this quiet time while it lasts."

I nodded and went back over to where the fairy tale books were. I pulled down the same book I was looking at earlier and sat in one of the chairs. I opened the dusty volume and coughed.

"I guess people don't like fairy tales here…" I said, waving the dust out of my face.

As I looked at the table of contents, my ears heard a woman nearby say in a hushed yet frantic voice, "It is her! She's the one on the poster."

"Are you sure?" another woman asked.

"Positive. They look exactly the same," the first said.

"We have to tell Mother," the second said.

I didn't look away from my book, pretending I didn't hear anything when in reality I wondered if they were really talking about me.

_Maybe it's Robin they're talking about… She's wanted too, right? _I thought to myself. _Yeah, that must be it. They're not talking about me._

But I knew that I was lying to myself.

After reading a couple of the fairy tales full of princes, damsels in distress, dragons, and wizards, Robin and Nami found me sitting in the chair. They were both carrying a couple books themselves.

"Do you want that?" Nami asked.

I looked up and closed the book, shaking my head and said, "No, I'm good."

I put the book away. We walked to the checkout counter and they paid for their books.

I felt all eyes were on me as we exited and as I looked back, I was right.

Robin looked at me and said, "I see what you mean. They really were looking and whispering."

"I knew it!" I said. "I wonder what they want…"

"Well, it doesn't matter," Nami said. "We're leaving after this."

"Sounds good to me," I said, wanting to get off the island as soon as possible.

Even more so than at the book store, I felt like strangers were watching my every move. Maybe I was just very paranoid or maybe it was real, but either way I wanted to leave immediately before something happened. If something did happen, Nami would probably yell at me for causing drama. This was supposed to be a vacation from drama! The last thing I wanted to do was be the one to cause it.

I sighed and tried to keep my mind on other things as we headed for the markets where Sanji, Usopp and Chopper were bound to be.

But as we passed one of the notice boards, I saw someone take down a poster hastily and shove it into her jacket.

As we passed even more of the notice boards, some of them seemed to have a poster missing from each one.

_Maybe someone has been found…_ I thought.

Little did I know it was me that had been found...

As we met up with Sanji, Chopper, and Usopp all carrying heavy loads full of produce and protein, Sanji greeted us all with a smiling face while Usopp and Chopper seemed distant. They didn't make eye contact with me.

"Let's head back, shall we?" Sanji suggested.

We all nodded in agreement and headed back towards the ship.

"Did you see all those missing child posters?" Nami said, starting up a conversation.

"Y-yeah…" Usopp said.

"Something wrong?" Robin asked.

"No," he said a little quickly.

We didn't talk the whole way back to the _Merry_.

As we all went back up the rope ladder, I noticed it was a little too quiet. Was Luffy sleeping?

We found Zoro on the ship by himself taking a nap.

Nami slapped Zoro awake and yelled, "WHERE'S LUFFY?!"

"Huh?" he asked. "He said he was going to go explore."

"And you let him go?!" she yelled again, hitting him in the head. She dusted her hands off as he was sent flying off the ship. "They never listen!" she complained.

"What did you expect?" Usopp asked after he set the things down in the kitchen. "This is Luffy we're talking about."

"I guess I was being too optimistic…" she said, sighing.

Zoro climbed back onto the ship with a huge bump on his head. I snickered as he walked by.

"What are you laughing at?!" he asked angrily.

"Nami-chan got mad!" I laughed.

He narrowed his eyes and said, "Shut up."

I laughed even more and he walked away, annoyed at me.

"Wait a minute!" she yelled, grabbing Zoro by the shirt, almost choking him in the process, as he tried to walk away. "You're going to go look for him with us."

"He'll come back eventually," Sanji said. "Maybe we should just wait."

"This is Luffy we're talking about! How long do you think it'll be before the navy is called because Luffy's strolling around town like he's not a wanted man?!" Nami pointed out.

"You have a point…" Usopp said. "Let's split up and try to find him."

"How about we go in groups?" I suggested.

"I'll go with Nami-san, Robin-chan, and Magnolia-chan!" Sanji said excitedly.

Usopp hit him on the head and said, "No way!"

"How about we draw straws?" Nami said. She went into the kitchen to get some straws and to mark them. She came back out a couple minutes later with seven of them in her hand. "There are three colors. All the people with the same color are in a group."

She held out the straws and everyone gathered around.

"On the count of three," she said. "One… Two… Three!"

Everyone grabbed a straw in a hurry. I got a blue one.

"I got green!" Usopp said.

"Same," Zoro said.

"I have a red straw," Robin said.

"I'm with Robin-chan!" Sanji said a little too enthusiastically.

"Looks like that leaves Chopper, Maggie-chan and me with blue," Nami said.

We all stood next to our groups, team green with Usopp and Zoro, team red with Robin and Sanji, and team blue with Chopper, Nami and me.

"We'll search near the ship," Nami said.

"We'll take the town," Robin said.

"I guess we'll search the forest on the other side," Zoro said.

"Be back before it gets dark, ok everyone?" Nami said.

"Got it," we replied.

So almost as soon as we got on the ship, we were back off it within minutes to go look for our missing captain.

Team blue's mission was searching around the ship in case Luffy was returning. We called out Luffy's name a lot, but never got a reply.

"Where did that idiot go?" Nami complained.

We searched the coast and everywhere we could see that was still somewhat close to the _Merry_, but still no Luffy.

"Maybe someone else found him," Chopper said optimistically.

"Let's hope so," Nami said.

Chopper began to get exhausted from the heat of the late afternoon sun and I even my legs were getting tired of walking so much.

"Nami-chan…" I complained. "We're really tired."

"Tell that to our idiot captain!" she said. "He could still be out here, we can't stop yet."

Chopper and I groaned simultaneously as we forged on ahead against our will.

When the sun was about to start its decent and the moon was threatening to come up, I began to get the feeling that people were following us.

I continually looked back, thinking I'd see a dark figure following us, but nothing ever appeared.

"Magnolia?" Chopper asked.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Usopp and Sanji didn't want to say anything…" he said, "but I thought I should tell you."

I stopped and said, "Tell me what?"

Nami stopped too. From the tone of his voice, it sounded serious.

He looked away hesitantly and said, "In the town, we were at the market and all those signs with posters on them…"

"Yes?" I asked, wanting him to continue.

"We saw a poster with you on it," he said.

My heart skipped a beat. I'd almost forgotten I had a poster. Sure, the entire navy knew about it, but common people? I totally forgot that they handed those posters out with the newspapers and so did Nami.

Nami and I locked eyes for a second, but she tried to brush it off. "Well, we're leaving as soon as we get Luffy, so there's nothing to worry about."

"Yeah…" I said.

"Are you ok, Magnolia?" Chopper asked sympathetically.

"Yeah, no I'm good," I lied.

I was panicking inside.

_Maybe all those people called the navy?! What if my dad's on his way right now? What do I do if they catch me? Oh, Luffy! Please come back so we can leave soon!_

As the sun slowly set I thought of all the things that could go wrong if someone called the navy about me. I came up with three possibilities.

One, they didn't call the navy and the poster was just someone that looked like me.

Two, the poster was me and the navy was called. And if the navy came, we'd leave in a hurry before they could get me.

Three, the navy was called and they would get me.

I shivered at the thought of the last possibility.

_I hope that the last one isn't the case…_ I thought.

"We should probably head back," Nami said. "It's getting dark fast. We might not be able to set sail at this point…"

"Yeah," Chopper agreed.

As we started to walk back to the _Merry_, hoping someone else had found Luffy, the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. It felt like someone was following us again…

But this time, I could hear the footsteps behind us, trying to walk in pace with our own. As soon as we stopped, the footsteps stopped, only a couple milliseconds after ours, but I could hear them clear as day.

Someone was in fact following us.

I looked around cautiously and saw a shadow dart behind a nearby tree. I gasped quietly, not expecting to see someone.

"What's wrong?" Chopper asked.

"Nothing," I replied. "It's nothing.

"Are you sure?" he asked. I nodded. "If you say so…"

My aching feet made me the last one in line as much as it scared me to be so. I got more and more paranoid as the day turned darker and darker.

When we got to the _Merry_, everyone was already there, including Luffy. I sighed in relief as we got on board.

"You're back!" Luffy said.

Nami hit Luffy in the head with the force of an elephant. His face was unrecognizable. "You idiot! Did he do anything stupid?!" she asked.

"I'm sorry…" he apologized.

"No, he was just walking around the woods," Zoro said.

"Well, at least we're all here," Nami said. "Since it's getting dark, let's stay anchored here and leave in the morning."

"Got it," Zoro said, getting the anchor.

Sanji called out for all of us that it was dinner time.

As we piled into the kitchen, Sanji already had made Robin's, Nami's and my plates full of delicious food. As he set it in front of me after I sat down next to Usopp and Zoro, I rejected it.

"I'm not very hungry," I said.

"If you don't want it, I'll eat it!" Luffy said with a huge chunk of meat already in his mouth.

This was not very uncommon among our crew. I was weird about food, as they all knew. Sometimes, I wouldn't eat for days and be totally fine, other days I would eat until I could explode.

Sanji just nodded and gave the rest to Luffy, as was the norm.

My mind was swimming with so many things that I didn't talk much at dinner. I was exhausted mentally and physically that I got up in the middle of dinner and went to go to sleep.

"Where're you going?" Luffy asked, still stuffing his face.

"I'm a little tired," I said. "I'm going to bed."

"'Night!" he said.

Everyone said goodnight as well.

"Goodnight," I called back as I exited the kitchen.

* * *

><p>I still couldn't sleep even though I was tired. I lied in bed tossing and turning with anxiety, thinking every creak of the ship was a navy soldier boarding the <em>Merry<em>, or every hoot of laughter coming from the kitchen was my dad walking in.

As Nami and Robin came in to go to hit the hay, I pretended to be fast asleep.

When the ship grew silent that night, I was the only one awake. I stared up at the ceiling and sighed.

"Please don't come, Dad…" I whispered.

Not a minute later, I heard footsteps on the deck above our room. Guessing it was Luffy or someone getting a midnight snack, I didn't think anything of it at the time.

But the footsteps were followed by an unfamiliar female voice that was on our level.

Someone was on board the _Merry_…

My eyes were wide with fright as I sat up in bed immediately.

_Should I wake up Nami…? _I asked myself._ No… Maybe I'm half asleep and just hearing things…_

I relaxed and laid back down in my bed. I closed my eyes and tried to go to sleep.

But I heard the door to our room creak open and footsteps of a living person came in.

I was completely frozen in fear.

"Which one?" I heard the same female voice from the book store say.

"The smallest one, stupid!" the second voice from the book store said.

"Sh, don't wake the others," the first said. "Do you have it?"

"Yeah," said the second. She was standing directly over me, I could sense it. "Ready?"

"Let's do it quickly," said the first.

"'kay," said the second.

I felt something cold on my forehead and then sleepiness washed over my body that I couldn't fight.

Someone was kidnapping me… Again!

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	31. What's With the Box?

As I woke up from my sleeping stupor, I noticed I was being carried somewhere by the two people who kidnapped me. I lifted my head and saw that they were running through the forest and it was already mid-morning.

"She's awake," said the one carrying me.

"I can see that!" said the other. "Don't you try anything funny, alright? We don't want to hurt you."

"Yeah, we get paid better if you don't have a scratch," said the one carrying me.

"Who are you people?" I asked, still a little groggy.

"I'm Fraus," said the other girl.

"And I'm Moros," said the one carrying me. "We're bounty hunters."

I swallowed nervously and blinked a couple times, not sure what to do.

"But we're not gonna hurt you, don't worry," Fraus said, though it didn't help. "We're taking you to our boss right now."

"No…" I said. "I don't want to go back to the navy!"

"Too bad!" Moros said, sticking her tongue out childishly. "It's not up to you; it's up to our boss."

I looked around frantically but we were in the middle of the forest at night. No one would come if I screamed. So I tried to struggle out of Moros' arms.

"Stop… struggling!" she said, trying to get me to be still. "Fraus! She's struggling!"

I heard Fraus sigh. "We're only allowed one more, or it'll hurt her, ok? Just hold on. We may need it later, don't use it all just yet."

Moros groaned and looked at me, "You better stop or I'll put you to sleep again."

I stopped squirming and tried to think of another way out of this situation.

"My friends will notice when I'm gone," I reminded them. "My captain's not gonna be happy."

"We're _so_ scared," Moros teased.

"You won't be gone for long, I hope," Fraus said cryptically. "So just shut up for now, ok?"

"Can I please use it, Fraus?" Moros asked. "Please? She's annoying. You think so, too, right?"

"Whatever. But make sure it'll knock her out for about an hour," Fraus said. "We'll need her awake for when the boss meets her."

"Got it!" Moros said. "Sleep tight, little girl!"

"What are you-"

Another draught of sleepiness came over me and forced me to fall asleep.

* * *

><p>"Wake up…" I heard someone say. "Wake up… now! … Now! … How about… Now?"<p>

Someone was poking my face. I opened my eyes and blinked as the images became clearer and clearer.

"She's awake again," Moros said.

"I can see that!" Fraus said, annoyed.

I sat up in a new place. It was a dark room with dirt walls and floors. I was underground.

"Welcome," Moros said. "This is our hideout."

I finally got a good look at my kidnappers. Moros was a very pale girl with red eyes and white hair tied up in a ponytail. Her clothes consisted of all leather and spikes. She even had a nose ring.

Fraus looked milder than Moros. Fraus had short purple hair, glasses, teal eyes, and war paint under her eyes. She wore a black jacket and ripped jeans with a plain white t-shirt underneath.

I couldn't think of anything to say.

Fraus held out her hand for me and said, "Come on, our boss wants to see you."

"You're gonna get it!" Moros said excitedly. "Punishment time!"

"P-punishment…?" I asked frightfully, taking Fraus' hand. She helped me stand up and then hit Moros in the head.

"Don't say that, it'll scare her," she said. "And it's not a punishment. It's a sentence."

"Sorry, sorry, jeez," Moros apologized.

"Come on, follow us," Fraus said.

They seemed ok, I guess… I mean, no one was trying to hurt me yet. But Fraus did seem nicer than Moros.

They lead me down a long hallway with candelabras stuck into the dirt walls to light the way. It gave the hallway and eerie yellowish glow.

That's when I realized I was still in my pajamas! And not to mention, I hadn't taken my eye patch either!

I put my hand over my right eye immediately, even though Fraus and Moros probably already saw my clock eye.

We approached a large wooden door that was outlined with different grey stones. The brass knocker was in the shape of a three-headed dog. Fraus took the knocker and banged it into the wooden door three times.

The door creaked open and we all walked in.

This room was very large and had a freezing cold stone floor. There were wooden arches in the center of the room, each with a candle attached to the posts that lead to a small throne. Beyond the arches were five dark figures in cloaks that all gathered around as we entered.

Thankfully, under the arches was a purple carpet so my cold feet wouldn't freeze just yet.

Fraus and Moros gestured towards the throne and Fraus said, "Go on. You first."

Hesitantly, I took the first step onto the purple carpet and began walking closer and closer towards the bounty hunter's boss.

The figures in cloaks looked more human as I walked under the arches. Each of them glared at me, grinning as if I was their next meal.

Fraus and Moros greeted their friends and walked behind me at the same time. The names I heard were Geras, Oizys, Momos, Eris, and Nemesis, yet all were female.

_Are these all the members? _I wondered. _If they only have eight members… they must be strong._

I heard a deep growl from the shadows before me. I stopped immediately, afraid of what was coming.

Like the door knocker, a gigantic three headed dog appeared before me and snarled nastily as droll dripped onto the carpet.

I almost shrieked in fear, but the other five members pulled on the chain together, whisking it away into the darkness.

"Oh, Cerberus, shut up," Moros said. "She's not food, you stupid dog."

I felt a hand on my shoulder. "Go on," Fraus said. "Cerberus won't attack unless the boss says too."

I nodded, thoroughly freaked out by that point, and continued walking towards the throne. I was careful to step over the large puddle of drool from the dog Cerberus.

"Oh, bring my puppy to me, girls," said a woman's voice coming from the throne. The five girls pushed Cerberus over towards its master. A long pale arm patted each of its heads in turn. "That's a good boy. Don't go scaring the guest now, Cerberus. Mommy won't give you a treat if you scare the little ones."

The dog barked deeply and set its heads on the giant woman's lap.

As I approached the woman sitting on the ginormous black throne, I was taken aback by how much she looked like my mother. Raven black hair, deep brown eyes, and fair skin. The resemblance was striking, but this woman was much larger than my mother. The way they dressed was very different also. This woman was very well-endowed and was wearing a dress that accentuated that fact. Her long black dress with plunging neck line and split along the side made her look more evil than my mom.

The woman smirked and said, "Ah, Magnolia. It's a pleasure to meet you at last. Fraus, Moros, you've done well with this one. You are dismissed to the shadows."

I looked back and saw the two who had brought me here putting on black capes and then withdrew into the shadows with their friends.

"As you've probably been told, we're bounty hunters," the woman said. "And I am the boss, Nyx of the Keres Bounty Hunters. I trust my daughters have treated you well?"

I nodded, still transfixed at her likeness to my mom.

"You've noticed, I take it," she said, "that I look like your mother?"

"You know my mom?" I asked.

"Yes, we go way back," Nyx said, petting Cerberus again. "Way back… But that's not why you're here, Magnolia."

"Then why am I here?" I asked.

"Because your father wants you back," she said simply. "And we're here to oblige ever so willingly."

My heart started racing. "No… Please, you don't understand…" I said. "My dad, he-"

"I know your situation, Magnolia. I know it very well," she said. "Tell me… What's your dream?"

"My dream?" I asked. "What are you talking about?"

"Your friends all have aspirations, do they not?" she asked. "To be King of the Pirates, to find the All Blue, to draw a map of the world… They all have reasons to follow your captain. So… What's yours?"

"I don't really have a reason…" I said. "I mean, I guess just to get away from the navy."

"That's not a dream," she said. "That's running away."

"Well, then I don't have one," I said simply.

"I'm prepared to offer you a deal..." she said. "I think it will help you find your dream."

"A deal…?" I asked.

She pushed her dog away and walked down the steps to me. She pulled a box out of thin air and said, "Here."

"What is it?" I asked, looking up at the tower-like woman.

"Just a box," she said, shrinking down to normal size. "I'll let you go if you take this box with you."

"How will a box help me find a dream?" I asked.

"You'll see," she said, smirking cryptically.

I narrowed my eyes at her, knowing something was very wrong with this bargain. "What's the catch?"

"It's all explained on the card," Nyx said. "So, do we have a deal, Magnolia? Your father… or your friends? What will you choose?"

She held out the box for me to take. Hesitantly, I reached for the box, but she grabbed my hand and said, "It's a deal, then. Fraus, Moros, I trust you can lead our guest back to her ship?"

As she let go, she disappeared into the shadows. The box dropped to the ground.

When I bent down to pick it up, a letter appeared out of nowhere tied down onto the box with a piece of twine. In fancy cursive written on the front of the envelope was my name.

I picked up the rectangular wooden box. It was fairly light weight. The box had maroon sides and an ornate black top and bottom. It had a keyhole on the front side.

Moros and Fraus appeared from the shadows and said, "We should get going."

"Do you know what time it is?" I asked.

"According to your eye, it's almost ten o'clock in the morning," Fraus replied.

I blushed and covered my eye with my free hand that wasn't carrying the box.

Moros laughed and said, "It's like Pandora's Box! How exciting!"

Fraus didn't say much after that. They both lead me out of the underground hideout of the Keres Bounty Hunters and into the forest.

They both suddenly stopped when we'd walked for about fifteen minutes.

"Your comrades should be looking for you," Fraus said.

"Yeah, we gotta go or they'll find us," Moros said. "I hope we'll see you soon!"

"Shut up, Moros!" Fraus snapped. "Goodbye."

They disappeared.

How could they just leave me there?! I had no idea where I was on the island, not to mention barefoot and eye patch-less!

But they were right about one thing. I could hear Luffy calling my name from somewhere in the forest.

"Luffy-san?" I asked.

I waited to see if I could hear them again.

"Luffy-san!" I yelled. "I'm over here!"

I started running for the sound of his voice, but stopped abruptly.

_How do I explain the box to them?_ I thought.

It'd be weird to say I made a deal with a bounty hunter lady, who looked a lot like my mom, to let me go free if I kept that box.

"Maggie?" I heard Luffy say not far from me.

"Luffy-san!" I said, seeing him a couple yards away in the trees.

"Oh, Maggie!" he said, running over to me. "Where the hell did you go?! We were all so worried. Are you ok?"

I suddenly heard a voice in my ear. It was Nyx. _Don't say anything, or else._

"Yeah, I'm fine. Um… How about I tell you later?" I said, pretending to yawn. "I didn't get much sleep last night. I'm exhausted."

"Can you make it back, or do you want me to carry you?" he asked.

I suddenly realized how tired I really was. I blushed, completely embarrassed, and said, "Do you think… you could…?"

He laughed and said, "Sure!"

He scooped me up into his arms like I was light as a feather and started running back.

"What's with the box?" he asked, noticing I was clutching it in my arms.

_Say nothing…_ Nyx's voice reminded me.

"I… Um… I'll tell you later," I said.

"Gotcha," he said.

As he ran back to the Merry, we met up with everyone in the forest.

"I found her!" he said, carrying me like a prize.

I blushed and didn't make eye contact with anyone.

"Chopper, can you look at her?" Luffy asked.

"On it!" he said as Luffy set me down.

Everyone crowded around me, asking me so many questions over each other, I couldn't even hear them.

Chopper examined me from head to toe, but I was perfectly fine, just exhausted.

"Let's go back to the _Merry_," Nami suggested. "You can tell us what happened there."

I was fully prepared to walk back on my own, but Luffy picked me up again, embarrassing me further.

It was bad enough I totally went missing last night, but now I was being carried back to the _Merry_ like a broken doll. I almost jumped out of his hands to avoid turning tomato-red for all eternity, but Luffy insisted in carrying me back.

But everyone kept asking one question before we even got to the _Merry_…

"What's with the box?"

* * *

><p>I was so overwhelmed with 'what happened's and 'is everything ok's that I wanted to explode and yell at everyone to shut up.<p>

But I didn't because that would be rude.

Luffy set me down in one of the chairs at the kitchen table and everyone took seats next to me.

"So what happened, Magnolia-chan?" Sanji asked.

"We woke up this morning and you weren't there," Robin said.

"And what's with the box?" Usopp asked.

"Hold on a minute everyone," Nami said. "Let her answer before asking anymore questions."

"Thank you," I said. "Well…" I said hesitantly, trying to think of something to say that would sound believable. "I don't remember."

"What?!" Luffy asked. "Come on, that can't be true!"

_Curses…_ I thought.

"Do you not wanna tell us or something?" Zoro asked.

"No, it's not that-"

"Were you kidnapped?!" Sanji asked. "Are they threatening you?!"

"No, it's just-"

"What's with the box?" Chopper asked.

"Yeah, what is with the box?" Nami asked.

"I wanna know, too!" Usopp said.

"Yeah, yeah!" Luffy said, "Start with the box-"

"PLEASE BE QUIET!" I yelled over everyone. They all looked at me and blinked a couple times, not expecting such a big voice to come out of a small me. "Sorry… I-I didn't mean to be rude…" I said.

"No, you're right," Nami said. "We're probably overwhelming you…"

"Why don't we let you rest, and then you can tell us what happened?" Robin suggested.

"Thank you," I said, clutching the box as I went below deck and into our room.

I looked around the room, wondering where I could put the box. I finally settled on keeping it in my side of the closet, under my clothes and bag so no one would notice it.

I sat down on the bed and before my head hit the pillow, I was already asleep.

* * *

><p>I woke up almost twenty four hours later, sleeping through setting sail from Amber Island.<p>

When I opened my eyes, Robin was sitting next to me reading a book. As I sat up, she said, "Good morning, little watchman. Did you sleep well?"

I nodded and said, "Yes, thank you."

She stood up and said, "I'll go tell everyone you've awoken."

After Robin had left, I scrambled into the closet to see if the box was still there. I sighed in relief and said, "Thank god…" It looked like no one had found it yet. I quickly covered it again and sat on my bed, trying to think of a possible story to tell everyone.

I heard the sound of running footsteps above me and smiled at the thought that everyone wanted to know if I was ok. Everyone came into the room with smiles on their faces.

"Nice of you to be up," Zoro said.

"We missed you, Magnolia-chan!" Sanji said.

Everyone gathered round and stayed silent until Luffy asked if I could tell them what happened now.

_Need I remind you not to say a word? _whispered Nyx's voice in my head.

"Well…" I started out. "I truly don't remember much. One minute I was in my bed and then the next I was in the woods with a weird box."

Luffy frowned and said, "I was hoping for something more interesting… Oh, well!"

"You didn't see any faces or anything?" Nami asked.

I shook my head and said, "N-nope. No one."

"Scary…" Chopper and Usopp chimed together.

"Well, at least you weren't brutally murdered," Robin said.

"Robin… Don't even go there," Nami said.

"So, you're sure you're ok?" Luffy asked.

I nodded and said, "I'm fine, I promise."

"What are you gonna do with the box?" Zoro asked. "Is there anything inside it?"

"I don't know, to be honest," I said. "I haven't really had the time to think about it yet."

"Well, if you open it, we should open it together!" Luffy said. "It'll be fun!"

"Yeah," I said.

"Well, I think breakfast will be ready in a couple of minutes," Sanji said.

"Food!" Luffy said. "Let's eat!"

"Yeah, I'm starving," Usopp said.

We all got up to go to the kitchen for breakfast, but Nyx's voice rang in my mind as I was about to walk out of the door.

_Open the letter today. I think you'll find it interesting… _she said. I heard a grim laugh after that.

Shivers ran down my spine and I looked to the closet with the box inside. I wondered what was going to happen if I read the letter.

Little did I know contained inside the letter was the biggest choice waiting to be dealt with I would ever have to make in my entire life.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	32. Life and Death

I was still bombarded with questions during breakfast along the lines of…

"Are you sure you don't remember anything?" Usopp asked.

"Yes," I said, trying to take a bit of my food before anyone else asked more questions.

"I'm glad we're off that island," Nami said. "Who knows what could've happened next?"

When breakfast was over and almost everyone was full, I went back down to our room to change into fresh clothes for the day.

_Are you going to open the letter now? _Nyx asked in my head. _I'm waiting, you know._

I sighed as I put on my usual striped shirt, orange tank top, and red skirt. I tied my eye patch over my right eye and felt that this was how things should be. I bent over in the closet and unearthed the box. I pulled it out of the wardrobe, onto the bed and set it in my lap.

I looked at the box and bit my lip. _I have a really bad feeling about this…_ I thought to myself.

The twine around the box was tied in a neat little bow to keep the letter in place. As I pulled one of the strings to undo the bow, Nyx spoke in my head again.

_Oh, this is very exciting! I can't wait for your reaction._

I wondered if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

I untied the twine and set it off to the side. I picked up the letter addressed to me and flipped it over. There was a waxy red seal of a three-headed dog in front of a burning skull.

The seal alone set chills down my back.

I set the letter aside as well and put the box back into the wardrobe and covered it with clothes. I went back to the bed and grabbed the letter and the twine and started wrapping it around my hand and through my fingers.

"Maggie-chan!" I heard Nami call from upstairs. "Are you coming up?"

"Y-yeah!" I called back, rushing up the ladder onto the main deck. "Sorry, I was getting dressed."

"It's all good," she said. "Just making sure you're still here!"

I laughed awkwardly and found my way to the rope ladder and started climbing up. My bag was waiting for me at the top as I sat down in my special spot on the _Merry_. I got out the telescope from my bag and set it beside me.

_Open it already!_ Nyx yelled in my head.

"Ok, ok, gosh…" I said, perturbed by her impatience.

With my fingers on the waxy seal, I pulled up and opened the envelope addressed to me. Inside was a piece of parchment-like paper. As I took out the letter, I noticed ink stains on the back.

When I completely unfolded the letter, I saw that it was written in an extravagant cursive font, almost too ornate to read. I struggled to make out the first few words, but it got much easier to read as I went.

_Dearest Magnolia,_

_There is a choice you must make in at least three days that I am quite certain will change you. If it is for the better or for the worst, I do not know, but I guess the outcome will decide that._

_As you know, I have given you a box in exchange for you to go back to your friends. Attached to the bottom of this letter is a key to open that box, but please don't be hasty. There are things you need to know before you make your decision whether to open the box or not._

_I'll go right out and say this bluntly. You should've chosen to be handed over to your father, it would've made things much easier for you. But you didn't and that was your choice. You have no one but yourself to blame._

_The conditions, as I said when we made the deal, are in this letter indeed, but I don't think you will be pleased to know what they are._

_So prepare yourself, because here they are._

_If you open the box, you will die. If you do not open the box within three days of reading this letter, all of your friends will die, but not you._

_How you or your friends will die is up to me, but I can assure you that whatever happens will be because you decided it to happen and not me._

_Now, I am a bounty hunter, so all I do is for the promise of money. You see, your friends Monkey D. Luffy and Roronoa Zoro have bounties much higher than yours, so personally, I'd like it if you just didn't open the box._

_But this is your choice, after all, and not mine. But if you open the box and choose to perish, I can still make money off your measly 3,000,000 Berry reward if I turn your body into the navy._

_There is no other alternative and I am not one to negotiate terms I've already made a deal on. Either open the box, or don't. And if you tell one of your friends about this, all of you will die._

_You have three days._

_~Auntie Nyx_

There was a small skeleton key taped to the bottom of the letter under Nyx's signature.

I had to read over the letter three times to fully comprehend the horror I'd gotten myself into.

I pulled my legs to my chest and blinked a couple times after I set the letter on the floor.

I don't even know what I was feeling at that point. Terror? Anger? Confusion? A combination of all three was probably more accurate, but each was so incredibly strong that I couldn't differentiate between the two overwhelming emotions.

I sat in complete silence for a long time stewing in feelings before I felt like I was going to throw up.

I was never very good in stressful situations, but a matter of life and death? That was going to be an impossible choice.

My first thought was obviously to open the box and kill myself, but I didn't think I could actually bring myself to do that.

The other option was to do nothing and kill all of my friends.

That, I also couldn't do, even if it was the 'easier option'.

And before I knew it, Sanji was calling to me for lunch.

_Had I really been up here that long? _I asked myself.

I climbed over the railing and onto the rope ladder to get onto the deck of the _Merry_. But because I was so consumed in my thoughts, my foot slipped and I fell onto my back on the deck.

"Magnolia-chan!" Sanji called in alarm, seeing me fall. He rushed over to me and knelt down by my side asking, "Are you alright? Are you hurt?"

I couldn't bring myself to look at him, but I replied, "I'm fine." I stood up, miraculously unharmed.

"That was quite a fall," Zoro said as I entered the kitchen with a concerned Sanji guiding me to my seat. "You sure you're ok?"

"Yeah, I'm good," I said, taking my seat.

I couldn't make eye contact with anyone, let alone hold a conversation with them all lunch. I stared at the food on my plate, repulsed at the thought of eating in a time of crisis such as this.

I tried to zone everyone out all lunch, but I felt a hand on my back that made me lose my concentration.

"You don't look like yourself, Maggie-chan…" It was Nami.

"Yeah, you're quieter than you normally are," Usopp said.

"Is anything the matter, little watchman?" Robin asked.

I bit my lip as I felt tears welling up in my eyes.

_My friends are so nice… How could I…? _I thought, not wanting to even finish the sentence.

I couldn't hold back the tears anymore. I burst into tears and stopped time to run out of the kitchen and into my room. I hid under the covers and started time again to cry.

I could just picture Nyx laughing evilly as she saw me agonizing over my impossible choice.

* * *

><p><strong>~Third Person POV~<strong>

**[Just before Magnolia ran out]**

The whole Straw Hat crew's eyes turned to the ever quiet Magnolia who looked like she was wrestling with her thoughts.

Finally, Nami had to ask the little girl what was the matter.

Magnolia, who hadn't looked up all during lunch, continued staring at her plate of food with an anxious expression on her face. She didn't reply, but burst into tears one second, and then disappeared out of thin air in the next.

Everyone stopped moving. Even Luffy stopped eating for once. The crew locked eyes with one another, all with the same thoughts.

Something was definitely wrong with their youngest member.

"Oh, my," said Robin. "That was quite dramatic, don't you think?"

"What happened?" Nami asked. "Did I say something…?"

"I think something's eating at her mind…" Usopp said. "W-well, that's what it looked like to me."

"Poor Magnolia-chan!" Sanji said.

"Should someone go check on her?" Chopper asked.

No one really knew what to do. Magnolia usually kept to herself, so this was a big shock for everyone.

"I will," said Nami, getting up from the table. "I'll see what's wrong."

"Just leave her be," Zoro said. "If she wants to talk, she'll talk."

"We shouldn't force an answer out of her," Robin agreed.

Nami sat back down and everyone looked to Luffy. He swallowed the piece of meat in his mouth and blinked a couple times.

"What?" he asked.

"What should we do?" Chopper asked.

He blinked even more. "About what?"

Nami hit him on the head. "About Maggie-chan, idiot!"

"Oh!" he said. "I don't know."

* * *

><p><strong>~Still Third Person POV~<strong>

**[The Keres Bounty Hunters' Hideout]**

Nyx was snickering evilly as her daughters congratulated her in the shadows. (Nemesis is the eldest, then Fraus, Eris, the twins Momos and Moros, Geras and lastly, the youngest: Oizys.)

"Priceless!" Nyx said. "Absolutely priceless! And I'm one to talk, being a bounty hunter."

"Yes, you are very wicked, Mother," the girls chanted.

Nyx smiled devilishly and said, "Thank you, my dears. What do you say, Geras, Oizys, Momos, Eris, Fraus, Moros, Nemesis, to a bet? What will your cousin choose? Open the box, or do nothing? What say you, girls?"

Moros spoke first, being the haughtiest of the sisters. "I think she'll open it, the little coward," she said rudely. "She was never one to think highly of herself anyway."

"I think she'll open it, too," Oizys agreed. "Our cousin believes her friends are more important. How foolish! I shudder to think we are actually related…"

Fraus butted in, "What if she doesn't open it? Maybe we'll be proven wrong."

"Oh, ye of little faith, Fraus," Eris said with a grin full of mischief. "Our dearest cousin isn't capable of killing a soul. She will open the box, I'm sure of it."

"I think she will tell the captain," Geras theorized. "I would, if I was in her shoes."

"Oh, but I gave her a warning," Nyx said. "She thinks everyone will die if she tells someone."

Geras put her head down, ashamed of her words.

Momos gasped at her mother's words. "You devil of an aunt! You're no better than Hades!" she said. "Our cousin shouldn't suffer so much… Oh, it's painful to watch!"

"Dear sister," Moros said to her twin. "You've always been too nice…"

"Nemesis, what say you?" Nyx asked. "You usually aren't quite in these situations."

"You're right, Mother," said the eldest of the sisters. "I also think she will tell the captain. Knowing Straw Hat, he will probably order the ship to be turned around and come after us."

Everyone laughed at the thought, even Nemesis herself.

"Don't be silly, Nemesis!" Moros said while patting her sister's back. "If they do come, they're no match for gods, even with his powers."

"Now, now, girls," Nyx said. "Don't fight. Your cousin is being tested as we speak. The navigator of the Straw Hats is coming in to speak with her."

Fraus and Momos didn't like this at all.

"I'm going to my room," Fraus said, not wanting to hear them jeer at her cousin.

"Fraus, wait up!" Momos said, calling for her older sister.

Moros snickered at both of them as they walked out of the throne room. "They're the weak links of the family anyway…" she said spitefully. "Mother, why do we keep them around anyway?"

"Moros, hold your tongue!" Nyx demanded. "All of my daughters are dear to me, no matter their opinions."

"I'm sorry…" she said.

As Fraus and Momos walked through the hallway, a figure walked towards them. The sisters stopped, wondering who could possibly be there.

As the figure came closer and closer, they recognized their aunt immediately. Her signature elegant dress with floral beading, her long raven black hair, and her determined brown eyes were unmistakable.

"What are you doing here?" Fraus asked.

"Is it about your daughter?" Momos asked. "Oh, I knew she would come! Mother won't be happy, Fraus…"

"I'm going to have a word with my sister about her actions today," she said, pushing past her nieces.

Fraus and Momos looked to each other with anxiety. "This isn't going to end well…" Fraus said.

"I just hope they don't fight…" Momos said as they started walking again.

As Nyx's sister burst open the doors to the throne room with no problem, her nieces all gasped at the sight of their aunt.

Nyx stood up from her throne and said, "Girls, leave me and my sister to talk alone."

The five remaining sisters rushed out of the throne room. The same thought ran through their heads as they exited.

_Auntie and Mother haven't spoken since the last incident… This can't be good._

"Sister, it's nice to see you," Nyx said. She didn't mean a word of it.

"Cut the formal greetings, Nyx," she said. "I'm not here to chat."

Nyx sighed and said, "You're right, Sister. But let's put aside our feelings about one another and talk civilly, alright? We only just finished the repairs from the last time you were here, fourteen years ago."

She laughed and said, "You must not work very fast, then."

"Well, when you only have your daughters to do the heavy-lifting, things can get complicated," Nyx said, annoyed.

She shook her head, mentally slapping herself. _I'm getting off-topic. This isn't why I came._ she thought.

She cleared her throat and said, "Nyx, why do you make my daughter suffer?"

Nyx narrowed her eyes and said, "It's only a bluff, I wouldn't actually follow through with it. And besides, it's not like you can kill a god anyway! You shouldn't be so worked up about this, Sister."

She clenched her fists in anger. "Maggie has already suffered enough in her life! Why would you choose to add on to it?"

"She needs motivation, Sister!" Nyx yelled. "She has no dreams, no real reason to live; I'm doing her a favor. You should be thanking me."

"There are other ways of attaining motivation," she snapped. "You shouldn't have to put her mind through Hades and back in order to find a dream."

"Ha! You're one to talk!" Nyx spat. "You deserted her, why only now do you decide to be a parent? Huh? Sister, what say you to that?"

She smiled, trying to calm the anger inside of her. "Maggie needed time to grieve…" was all she said.

"Seven years?" Nyx asked.

"Well, I couldn't just mess with her fate; it's not mine to change! She was in her father's care," she said.

"Care?" Nyx asked. "I highly doubt he cares for her anymore."

She rolled her eyes. "Power corrupts mortal men, you know that. If he didn't care for her, then why put out missing posters?"

Nyx cursed her younger sister under her breath and said, "Well, I'm not going to take back the box. And don't you go crying to your boss to change anything, because I know you will."

"I have already tried," she said. "She said that it must happen."

"Then why are you here now, Sister?" Nyx asked.

"I wanted your reasons behind it."

"You have them," she said. "I already explained."

"Yes… I know that."

"Then leave, Sister," Nyx said. "You're not welcome here."

"I… I will go," she said. "But I assure you, you're malicious methods will not go unpunished. I will see to it personally."

"You can't demote me even more than I already am!" Nyx laughed. "I was supposed to have your title, remember?"

"It was not my decision and you know that, Nyx," she reminded her sister. "Father Time has her own way of doing things."

Nyx rolled her eyes. "Just hurry back to your stupid organization. I already told you, you're not welcome here."

"Goodbye, Nyx," she said.

"Just go, Sister," Nyx scoffed. As her sister disappeared, Nyx cursed her fate and said, "I was supposed to be the Goddess of the Sun, not you, Orazia… Or should I say… Apollo."

* * *

><p><strong>~Back to Magnolia's POV~<strong>

Why was this happening to me? When did I ever asked for such a huge decision?

_I wish I never took that stupid box!_ I screamed in my head.

There was a knock on the door.

"Maggie-chan… Can I come in?" Nami asked.

I flinched at the sound of her voice and shook my head. "Please, just go away…" I cried.

She came in anyway and sat down on the bed. "Can you tell me what's wrong?" she asked. I shook my head again. "Why not?"

_If I do, you'll die! _is what I wanted to say.

But I sat up and flipped up my eye patch so I could wipe the tears away. I put on my best and most convincing fake-smile ever after I flipped the eye patch down again and said, "It's nothing, I promise."

She didn't buy it at all. I read it all over her face. But instead of further questions, she said, "If you say so…"

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong>

**Ok, disclaimer here. I have never read Percy Jackson, but my friend is obsessed with it so I kinda know what it's about. So let me just make this clear, I didn't 'copy' any idea from there. This is my own story and I have my own set of rules for the gods in it.**

**Oh, and also, this is the last chapter I pre-wrote... So I really don't know when I'll post the next chapter. (Have even started lol.) I'll probably over the weekend, but I'm moving houses, so... We'll see...**

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	33. Daddy Issues

**Author's Note:**

**I'm so sorry this took so long! First, my mom, sister and myself had to move out of my dad's house and we didn't have wifi for part of the week! Then school hit and I had a bunch of projects to finish! Now it's the last half of my spring break and I had so many birthday parties (including my own :D) to attend! Suprise! I'm 15 now! So because of those reasons, this chapter was delayed... Hey! But at least it's here now.**

**Oh, also a little update on one of my other fanfictions I just started. It's called _Emily_ and it's about Ace, Sabo, and Luffy's childhood... Except they have another friend named Emily! That's all I'm saying about it at the moment, so go check it out if that seems interesting to you. (Not forcing you or anything...)**

**Ok, that's it for my life update. Happy reading!**

* * *

><p>I tried to avoid everyone after Nami came in to see if I was ok. I needed to be away from everyone in order to make my decision. I eventually made a pros and cons list, but it didn't really help. It was just too balanced. And that was a bad thing.<p>

Pros of Opening the Box: My friends live

Cons of Opening the Box: I die

Pros of Not Opening the Box: I live

Cons of Not Opening the Box: My friends die

Either way, someone was going to die, and I had no idea who. My stomach lurched at the thought of actually making a decision. Who am I to decide who lives and who dies?

I'm not, that's the problem.

By lunch, I speculated everyone knew something was up with me. Even up in the crow's nest I felt all eyes looking at me.

Was it selfish to want to live? But at the same time, I didn't want my friends to die…

I needed to talk to someone, anyone would be fine. But if I did, everyone was going to die.

It was so frustrating!

I bit my lip as I wrestled with my thoughts. How in the world was I going to make this choice?!

When dinner came and Sanji called up to me, I didn't reply. To be honest I didn't actually hear him the first time. The voices in my head were screaming at each other.

As I heard him climbing up the crow's nest, I looked around and rested my head up against the side. I closed my eyes and pretended to be asleep.

"Magnolia-chan…" Sanji's concerned voice said when he reached the top of the ladder. There was a long pause. I heard him climb back down.

When I opened my eyes again, I heard him say to Nami, "She's asleep."

"Something's definitely wrong…" she said.

I bit my lip and looked at my feet.

_I want to tell you so bad, Nami… You're like my older sister, but I can't say anything! _I thought.

As I heard the kitchen door shut, I sighed. I looked over the railing and crawled down the rope ladder very quietly and hoped no one would see me. I snuck back into the girl's dorm and pulled out the box from the closet.

But I panicked as I heard footsteps coming towards me.

"Tick-Tock!" I whispered, stopping time. I scurried up to the deck and saw Robin coming out of the kitchen and towards the girl's dorm.

Had she seen me?! Did she know I was in there?

I climbed up the rope ladder while carrying the box and sat back down.

"Un-Tock," I whispered, starting time again.

I heard Robin go into the girl's dorm and say, "Little watchman?"

_Crap! She did see me!_

I stayed extra still and didn't even breathe. I silently hoped she wouldn't come up there.

"Hm, must've been my imagination," I heard her say.

The kitchen door shut again.

I sighed in relief and picked up the note I'd left in the crow's nest. The inked words on the paper seemed to be even darker than before. I took the key from the paper and put it into my bag in case I needed to use it…

I read over the note a couple times. There was one thing that really did bother me about the note… Well, aside from the fact I royally screwed myself. The way she signed the note: Auntie Nyx.

_Was she just trying to be funny? I mean, I never had any aunts when I was with Mom and Dad before…_

I crumbled up the piece of paper and tossed it on the floor of the crow's nest. With my arms wrapped around my knees, I looked to the box and felt a wave a curiosity over take me.

_What was really in the box? Was that what was going to kill me?_ I thought.

I felt around in my bag for the key and placed it on my lap when I gripped it. I reached for the box and did the same. Through the keyhole I looked inside with my left eye, but it was too dark to see anything. When I shook the box, it produced no sound at all.

"That's weird…" I said. "Come to think of it, it was pretty light when I carried it back…"

_What if it really is empty and this is all some sick joke…? _I thought. _No, she seemed pretty serious… And it's not like I want to test that theory._

"Well," I said, playing devil's advocate. "Maybe I could just take a quick peak…? Surely that doesn't count as opening it, right?"

I dug under the box and found the key. As I was about to put the key in the hole, Nyx's voice rung through my ears.

_No peaking! _she said playfully._ Just one peak can and will end your life._

I gulped and put the key away quickly.

"I could've just died…" I said. "Ok, no more curiosity. I need to make a decision!"

I felt a yawn take over my actions and felt a little exhausted from too much thinking.

"I still have two more days…" I said. "I'll make a decision tomorrow."

* * *

><p>I slept like a rock only to wake up starving in the morning. I suddenly realized I hadn't eaten in two days.<p>

I looked around and saw that both Nami and Robin were up. That's when it hit me. I had completely forgotten about everything while I was asleep.

_Maybe I could skip breakfast again…_ I thought drearily.

My stomach growled in defiance. I groaned and got dressed.

_You need to eat Magnolia, _I told myself._ Food is part of survival._

As I was walking up to the deck, Nami popped her head out of the kitchen.

"Oh, I was just about to come get you!" she said rather happily.

"Thank you," I said, walking past her with a fake smile on my face.

I took a seat next to Usopp and Chopper as Sanji set a plate in front of me.

"Are you feeling up to eating today, Magnolia-chan?" he asked like nothing was wrong.

I nodded my head and said, "Yep!"

I was trying to act normally and I think so was everyone else.

It was awkwardly quite at breakfast. No one spoke much. As soon as I would look at someone, everyone would look away. I also noticed I was one of the only ones eating. Aside from me, Luffy, Zoro and Robin, no one even touched their food.

"Are you guys not hungry?" I wondered.

"O-oh!" Nami said.

Everyone started eating quickly.

_Ok, this is weird… _I thought.

When Nami was finished stuffing her face, she looked at me with a worried expression and cleared her throat. Everyone looked to me.

"Maggie-chan…" she began. "Is something bothering you…?"

I smiled and said, "No, why do you ask?"

She blinked a couple times and continued. "W-well… It's just that… People don't normally burst into tears when they're alright."

Zoro snorted and Nami hit him in the head.

_I'm being ganged up on! _I realized._ Curse sustenance! I shouldn't have come to breakfast…_

I tried to think of an excuse to get me out of this situation.

"You know, Maggie," Luffy said seriously. "You can talk to us if there is something wrong."

"We'll always lend you an ear, Magnolia-chan!" Sanji chimed in.

"Yeah!" Chopper agreed. "We're your friends!"

My lip quivered as I tried my best to smile. The truth was I wanted to cry, but I held them back as best as I could.

"I… I…" I said, trying to string words together. "I was just thinking about my mom yesterday, that's all."

I thought that would ease their worries, but it didn't. They inquired further. I'd never had friends before, so people wanting me to talk about how I felt was new to me.

"But why does that make you cry?" Chopper asked.

I suddenly realized they barely knew anything about me.

"It's a long story," I said, trying to end the conversation. I took a bite of the food on my plate, trying to avoid further discussion on this uncomfortable subject matter.

Everyone was waiting for me to continue speaking.

_Take a hint, will you?_ I thought.

I swallowed without chewing all the way and felt the chunky mush scrape down my esophagus.

"Well," I began. "It all started when I was five. My dad came home to me and my mom telling us he'd found something amazing! I didn't really get what was going on, but he pulled out this weird looking fruit out of a small bag and said it was a Devil Fruit. I don't know why he didn't eat it when he found it, but he brought it home to us. He was having a hard time deciding if he should sell it or eat it."

I paused and looked at everyone's faces. Everyone, even Zoro looked interested in what I had to say.

Seeing their reactions made me feel a little bit better.

"That night, my mom woke me up and told me to eat the fruit because she thought that if my dad did eat it, he would try to work his way up the ranks in the navy and die out in the sea trying…" I said. This part made me tear up a little. "I asked why couldn't she eat it and she said that she didn't have long to… to live…"

Queue gasps from various Straw Hat members.

"She didn't want to tell me," I said. "But she said it would be a waste of the thing if she ate it. So I did and here I am now. The Tick-Tock Fruit was the fruit I ate." I shuddered to think what would've happened if my dad had eaten the fruit. "It was supposed to be our little secret. We were going to go with the story that someone had stolen it in the middle of the night. Except…"

"Except what?!" Usopp asked.

"He figured out that I ate it," I said.

Even more gasps.

"How did he know?" Chopper asked.

I pointed to my eye patch and said, "The clock on my right eye is very hard to miss. He knew something was up."

"And then…?" Nami asked.

"That day was kind of a blur to be honest… All I remember is the screaming and yelling from the kitchen while I was locked in my room," I said. "But, that night, my dad took me onto his navy ship without me or my mom knowing and sailed off. That's when he gave me this eye patch and my dagger."

"And you were… what did you say… five?!" Usopp said. "What a horrible dad!"

"What happened after that?" Sanji asked.

I averted eye contact with everyone. This was the part that made me uncomfortable. I shifted positions in my chair.

"Well, in all honesty…" I said. "I don't want to say he tortured me… But he kinda did…"

"Torture…?" Robin asked.

"He wanted to use my powers so he could get higher in the navy," I said. "So he was willing to use whatever methods made me progress faster."

"That's awful…" Nami said sadly.

"And then my mom died," I said. "And he didn't even want to go to her funeral."

"You didn't even get to say goodbye?" Luffy asked.

I shook my head and felt the tears coming, but I refused to cry. "And lately I've been hearing her voice in my head…" I said. "It's like all my worst memories coming back at once."

And then I made a mistake.

"And then seeing Nyx the other day… She looks exactly like my mom," I said.

"Who's that…?" Chopper asked.

"The one who kidnapped me-"

I realized it too late.

"Then, you do remember what happened?!" Luffy asked.

"Umm…" I said. "I didn't mean that! I was just… Um… Forget I said anything!"

I ran out of the room.

I heard Nyx's laughter in my head. _You sure handled that well!_

If they started asking questions, then I'd spill about the box. And if that happened…!

_No,_ I told myself. _Don't think like that. You'll figure it out on your own, just like you always do._

* * *

><p>I avoided everyone like the plague. Despite getting hungrier and hungrier throughout the day, I refused to eat with my friends.<p>

Instead of leaving the key in my bag, I found a piece of string and wore it around my neck and under my shirt so it wouldn't be spotted or loacated easily.

That night I stayed awake staring up at the ceiling.

"I only have a couple hours left…" I whispered.

I bit my lip and rolled over in the bed.

_I'll wake up extra early to make my decision… I mean, I've thought it through a bunch of times. I just need to decide on something._

But I knew it wasn't going to be that easy.

My mental alarm clock was set for five in the morning. I figured I would have until about eleven to make my choice.

Except my snooze mode was activated and I overslept.

I opened my eyes, expecting to see everyone still asleep and barely any light outside.

What I got was sunshine in my eyes as I sat up in an empty room.

My eyes widened in panic. I looked at the clock on the side table. I was somewhat relieved that it was only 7:43, but still. That was two hours and forty-three minutes less to make my decision.

I got dressed at the speed of light and race onto the deck. I was about to head straight up to the crow's nest but a hand pulled me back.

"Oh, no you don't, Maggie-chan," Nami said. There was a hint of anger in her voice.

I bit my lip and looked around. Robin was standing behind her, smirking.

"Is something wrong…?" I asked.

"Hell yeah there is!" she said, dragged me back into the kitchen.

Everyone else was in the kitchen staring at me.

I was too busy looking at their faces to notice the box on the table. Robin pulled up a chair while everyone else stood and told me to sit down.

I felt even smaller than usual.

"What the _hell_ is this?!" Nami asked, slapping the wrinkled note on table next to the box.

I looked at everyone in horror. "Wh-what do you mean…?" I asked. "Where did you get that?"

"Robin and I knew you were hiding something, so we did a little searching up in the crow's nest," she said. "So, care to tell us what actually happened when you were kidnapped."

Everyone looked at me, ready for me to spill the beans.

My lip trembled with fear. Did this mean we were all going to die…?

"Umm…" I said.

Nyx whispered in my head, _Go on, I'll allow this one. Technically you didn't tell them anything._

I burst into tears and told them everything that happened, even the box and the note. I didn't even care if we were going to die at that point; I just wanted it off of my chest.

I was still sobbing buckets by the time I was finished.

"I've made my decision…" I cried, standing up and taking the key off of my neck. "Which is why I have to do this!"

"Maggie-" Luffy said.

"Tick-Tock!" I said, stopping time.

Tears were streaming down my face as I held the key in my shaky hands.

I walked hesitantly towards the box and looked around at all my friends.

"Goodbye…" I whispered. "I finally got to say it…"

It took a while for me to actually get the key into the keyhole. As I turned the key, the box sprung open and a cloud of black dust erupted from it.

"Un-Tock…" I said.

The mass rearranged itself into a silhouette and then into Nyx. She smirked at me and said, "So this is what you've chosen?"

I nodded, wiping away the tears.

"You're ready, then?" she asked.

I nodded again, but more hesitantly this time.

"Well too bad!" she said. "It was all a bluff! I was never going to kill you, silly! I was never going to kill any of you!"

"Then… Then what about the dream?" I asked.

"I trust you've found it?" she asked.

"Well, I guess…" I said.

"Then my work here, is done," she said. "Goodbye, my beautiful niece! Have a nice life!"

And she was gone with the box and the note.

"What the hell just happened…?" Zoro asked.

I slid down to my knees and broke down crying again. "I didn't know what to do… _hic_!" I cried. "I couldn't let you guys… _hic_… die… So I thought I'd…"

As I was wiping away the tears from my eyes, I felt a strong embrace surround me.

Luffy's voice was right by my ear. "You should've told us before!"

I was shocked. I thought everyone was going to be mad at me! Everyone soon joined in on the group hug.

"We'd never let anything happen to you, Maggie-chan," Nami said.

"We're a family!" Usopp said. "Have a little faith!"

I nodded as I sobbed at the kindness being shown to me. "I think of you guys as my family, too! That's my dream! To have a loving family for the rest of my life!" I cried as they all let go. "Nami-chan's the older sister. And Luffy-san, Usopp-san, Chopper-san, Zoro-san, and Sanji-san are the brothers."

"What about me?" Robin asked.

"You're like the mom, Robin-san," I said.

"Well, if we're a family, stop being so formal!" Luffy said yelled. "Drop the _–san_!"

"Yeah, to be honest, it is really annoying," Usopp said.

"I second that," Zoro said.

I blinked a couple times. "Luffy…?" I said, trying it out. "No, it doesn't sound right…" I smiled as I thought of something even better. "Luffy-nii!"

Everyone smiled hugely.

"Luffy-nii, Sanji-nii, Usopp-nii, Zoro-nii, Chopper-nii, Nami-nee, and Robin!" I said.

"That's more like it!" Luffy said.

"Haha, yeah!" Chopper said. "I've never had a sibling before!"

"To have a loving family, huh?" Sanji asked. "That's a lovely dream."

"So…" I said. "If I'm not gonna be formal with you guys, then you guys gotta stop calling me Magnolia."

So I now had a dream I wanted to accomplish. I'd never had a loving family with my parents. Sure, my mother did love me, but my dad was never around before the incident. This was a whole new concept to me and the Straw Hats were the family I had when I needed it the most.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	34. Cold Hearted

"I think it's uninhabited…" I yelled down below. "I mean, it doesn't look like there's a city or anything."

"Ready the anchor! We'll land on the island!" Luffy yelled excitedly.

I smiled happily as I collapsed the telescope and descended down from the crow's nest of the _Merry_.

By the time I was down, everyone had already figured out what they were going to get from the island.

I stayed with Sanji out on the beach while everyone else went to stock up on food. So, when they all came back, we had a feast! But even when that was done, Luffy had eaten most of the food, so we all went out to find even more.

"Hey, did you find any medical herbs, Chopper?" Usopp asked.

"Yep!" he said. "I've collected most of them, but there may be even rarer ones on this island. But, more importantly… Something's been bugging me for a while."

"Hm?" I asked. "What is it, Chopper-nii?"

"That weird groove running down this path," he said, pointing to the ground.

"Yeah, that is weird," Usopp said. "I wonder what it is."

"It looks like a bike trail," I said. "I thought this island was uninhabited…"

"It can't be a bicycle if no one's here," Sanji said.

"Yeah, that's true," Usopp said.

We could see a clearing up ahead. I hoped that our walk was almost over because it was getting pretty boring.

When we reached the clearing, Chopper started running towards a large rock in the middle of it.

"What's with Chopper?" Luffy asked.

"Maybe he found something," Zoro said.

I looked closer at the rock and saw some black fuzz on top of it.

"Chopper!" Luffy yelled. "He's trying to have that huge mushroom all to himself!" He dropped his bag of provisions and sprinted towards the rock.

"That doesn't look like a mushroom to me…" I said.

All of a sudden, Chopper bounced backwards from behind the rock.

"What the matter?" Luffy asked, catching up.

"Something happened, let's go," Zoro said urgently.

We all ran over to see what the matter was. It turns out the so-called 'mushroom' was actually the hair of a very tall man.

"What's with you guys?" said the man.

"What's with you?" Luffy spat right back.

I heard Robin gasp right behind me. I looked back right as she fell to the ground in terror.

"Robin?" I asked. "What's the matter?"

"Oooh?" asked the man. "Now, don't get so bloodthirsty, guys. I'm not here on orders. Since it's a nice day, I took a stroll here."

_What is this guy talking about? And what does he have to do with Robin?_ I thought.

"Orders?" Zoro asked, clutching his swords anxiously. "From what organization?"

"He's a marine," Robin said. "And he's one of the people known as the World Government's ultimate powerhouses."

_A marine…?_

"An Admiral at Navy Headquarters… Aokiji," she said.

"Oh, my," he said, smirking. "You've turned into a good-looking woman… Nico Robin."

"Why is s-someone like that here?!" Usopp asked with a nervous stutter in his voice. "You should be hunting multi-million berry bounties! Go someplace else!"

"Hold on a sec, you guys, geez…" he said. "I came out to have a good time and honestly I'm feeling very attacked right now. Didn't you hear what I said? I only came for a stroll, didn't I? Don't get so worked up." He laid down on the grass, saying it made him tired standing up and explained once again that he had no intentions of capturing us. "I came to check the whereabouts of Nico Robin, and just as I thought, she was with you guys," he said. "I'll have to report this to headquarters 'cuz now the total bounty for you guys has changed." He started doing the math and eventually came to the conclusion he was too lazy to do math in his head.

I thought that if we were being threatened, we should just roll with it and get away as soon as possible, but no. My family thought otherwise.

Luffy was about to attack him, but Sanji and Usopp held him back with all there might.

But many people came out of the woods after hearing that Aokiji was a marine. They all looked starved and weary. Usopp and Sanji went to go find some food while Chopper started to take care of the injured people. They all were in a shipwreck caused by a giant frog apparently named Yokozuna that plowed into their passenger ship. Aokiji said he would handle the survivors since there was an island nearby where they could get proper treatment.

"How are they supposed to get there?" I asked. "They don't have a log pose or even a ship!"

"Oh, they'll be fine," he said.

"Nothing you say sounds convincing, you know…" Usopp criticized.

Well, after a couple minutes loading supplies onto a raft by the shore, Aokiji and the survivors were ready to take off. He went to the water's edge and squatted down. As he put his hand into the water, he told us to step back a little. So obviously, we all did since we didn't know what his powers were.

In the blink of an eye, the whole ocean in front of us was frozen. I was so amazed and stunned, as were everyone else. How could he do something that extensive so quickly?!

_No wonder he's an admiral…_ I thought.

He came back up onto the shore nonchalantly and said, "That will probably last a week. Take your time and head in that direction. You'll get to the island in four days. But it's a little cold, so dress warmly while walking."

All the survivors were ecstatic and very grateful to him as they started towards the next island. They even thanked us!

It started to get a little chilly so I backed away from the ice and started rubbing my arms to stay warm. Everyone soon joined me because of the frigid conditions out on the ice.

Aokiji was brooding on the ground, looking at Luffy.

"You're just like your gramps, Monkey D. Luffy, you're hard to figure out," he said. "Well, the reason I came here was to have a look at you and Nico Robin… On second thought… Maybe you should die now, huh? The government is still taking you guys lightly, but if I delve into your history, I can tell that your group has a backbone. Although your group is small, since its gathering shrewd members, it'll probably become a problem later on. I've been dealing with outlaws for a long time, but it worries me to think how you'll turn out."

I took a cautious step away from Aokiji as Usopp started freaking out and remembering how he said how Aokiji only came to check things out.

"The reason I especially regard you guys as danger is because of you, Nico Robin," he said.

"You are after Robin!" Luffy shouted out. "I'm gonna beat the crap outta you!"

"Her bounty amount isn;'t just an indication of her strength. It indicates the level of danger she poses to the government. That's why you got a 79 million berry bounty on your head at the age of eight," he said.

I looked to Robin nervously, wondering if he was going to attack us.

"You survived by using people and being quick to change sides. So is this group your next victim?" he asked.

Robin's eyes widened.

"Th-that's not true!" I said sheepishly.

"Yeah, you hold a grudge or something?" Sanji asked, about ready to kick him.

"No," he said. "But if we are somehow connected, it's because I let her get away once. You guy swill eventually realize it, too. In the future, you'll regret that you took in a troublesome woman," he said.

"Shut up, her past doesn't matter to us!" he said.

"What matters is the present," Sanji said.

"Yeah, Robin is our fiend now! Don't talk bad about her in front of us," Chopper yelled.

Robin and Aokiji just stared at each other. It was intense to watch the hatred in her eyes towards the man.

"You did a good job befriending this lot," he said.

That was the last straw for Robin. She held her arms in the signature pose she always did before attacking and yelled, "Just get to the point! If you want to capture me, go ahead and do it!" Thirty hands spouted from the ground and from Aokiji himself as she shouted, "Treinta Fleurs!"

"Robin, stop!" Usopp yelled nervously.

"Clutch!" she said, as the hands shattered him into ice shards.

_Did she really kill an admiral…?_ I wondered.

But my wonder was put to rest when he emerged from the ice.

"H-hey, guys! Run!" Usopp yelled, starting to sprint away from the dangerous man. "Let's get out of here!"

"That wasn't nice," he said, walking over to Robin. He made a jagged and spiky sword out of his ice. "I wasn't going to kill you, but…"

He swung his sword towards Robin, but Zoro blocked it with his own sword. Sanji took the opportunity to kick the sword out of Aokiji's hands.

As Luffy wound up his arm to attack, Aokiji grabbed onto Sanji's leg and Zoro's arm. When Luffy punched him, all three of them started to freeze. They all fell back in shock and pain.

"Oh, no!" Chopper said. "They have to be treated right away! If they get frostbite, their limbs could fall off!"

"Robin, run!" Nami yelled as Aokiji enclose his icy touch around Robin.

I was too frightened to move, even though I ordered my legs to do something. I watched in horror as she froze alive.

"Robin!" I gasped.

Luffy boiled over in rage. "You jerk!" he yelled.

"She'll still live if you defrost her carefully," he said.

I sighed in relief. At least she wasn't dead yet.

"But her body is fragile, so if you break her she'll die," he said. "For example…" He wound up his arm, threatening to punch her.

A jolt of lightening shot threw my body as I sprinted to save her. "Tick-Stop!" I yelled, 'freezing' him in time.

"Thanks, Maggie!" Luffy said. "Get her on the ship and save her!"

Usopp picked her up with Chopper and ran for the ship. But as I lost focus, Aokiji 'unfroze'.

"What the hell…?" he said, looking at me.

I squealed a little bit and backed away.

"You're better off not saving her," he said. "The world's better off with her dead."

A courageous Nami pointed her Clima Takt in his face and said, "Not to alarm you, but all pirates are like that."

"You're right," he said. "But get out of my way."

He threw here to the side. Just as he did that, Zoro and Sanji started running to attack him, but Luffy ordered them to stop.

"I wanna fight you in a duel," he said to Aokiji.

"Fine with me," he said. "But since I don't have a ship to ride back on, I'll have to kill you."

I ran over to help Nami up.

"You guys go back to the ship," he said.

We four nodded and sprinted back to the ship. I didn't know how Sanji did it, with a frozen leg, but he ran as fast as the rest of us.

"Chopper!" Nami screamed.

He rushed outside and asked where Luffy was.

"We'll explain later!" Zoro yelled, clutching his frozen arm. "We're gonna go back, but do something about our frozen arm and leg!"

"Well, melt those frozen areas with water right away!" he said. "But we're using the shower room for Robin…"

Sanji was literally a step ahead of him. He dove into the water and said, "Is this ok?!" Zoro joined him.

"Yeah, once you melt them, come up to the ship with rubbing the affected parts!" Chopper yelled down at them. "Nami, Maggie, come up and help with Robin!"

"Yeah!" we both said, rushing up the rope ladder to help them.

* * *

><p>Everyone was exhausted, yet relieved to hear that Robin and Luffy, yes, Luffy (he was frozen too) were both alive and had heartbeats.<p>

* * *

><p>After three days of letting them rest and get warmed up, we sailed out to our next island.<p>

When Robin finally emerged from her bed, I was the first to hug her. Well, mostly because I cheated and used my powers, but hey, first is first.

We all finally had lunch together after three days with Robin missing. (Luffy popped back up in no time at all).

But after lunch, as I was up in the crow's nest surveying the waters, I noticed something swimming in the middle of the ocean. Curious, I took out my telescope to get a better look.

"Hey guys!" I said. "There's a frog swimming freestyle in the water!"

"What?" Zoro asked. "Are you messing with me?"

"No, look!" I said. "Look!"

After hearing his bewildered gasp, he decided he needed to inform everyone of what _he_ discovered.

"Zoro-nii…" I said, perturbed. I sighed and watched as everyone saw the same spectacle I saw.

"Follow it, guys!" Luffy merrily ordered.

"Yeah!" they all agreed.

I actually fell out of the crow's nest because they shifted our course rather sharply, but Luffy caught me before I could plummet down to the deck. With an extended arm, he dropped me back into the crow's nest with a smile.

"Thank you, Luffy-nii!" I called.

"No problem, Maggie!" he said.

"Keep heading straight!" I said. "It's headed for a lighthouse!"

Nami came out, strikingly mad that Luffy changed our course without telling her.

As we pulled our ship up to the lighthouse, a bell started ringing, almost like a warning bell.

I surveyed the area and nearly jumped out of my skin when I saw a train coming straight for us.

"GUYS!" I yelled. "There's a… a t-train!"

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	35. A Seafaring Train?

"Go back!" Nami yelled. "Turn 180 degrees!"

The alarm bell rang fervently, telling us to get out of the way quickly. All of the boys quickly got the oars ready to turn the _Merry_ around. I had to hold on for dear life up in the crow's nest while they spun the ship around.

The whistle of the train zoomed past us about a millisecond after the boat was clear of the tracks.

"Hey, frog! Run! What're you doing?!" Luffy yelled, seeing the frog wasn't going to doge the oncoming train.

With a loud bellow of (I think) determination, the frog was hit by the train and bounced farther into the sea.

I raced down the rope ladder to join everyone, nearly tripping twice.

"That was by far… the strangest… thing… I've ever seen!" I said, huffing.

"Same here…" Usopp said.

Someone behind us on the island started yelling for their grandmother because pirates had come.

"Someone came out of the building," Zoro said, gritting his teeth. "They're gonna call for help."

We all looked over to see a large old woman and a little girl calling for help on a Transponder Snail.

"Hey, maybe we can bring out food as a peace offering!" Luffy suggested, grabbing the newest thing Sanji had cooked. He jumped off the ship and onto the dock and presented it to the people.

When it seemed they accepted it, the rest of us got off the ship to meet the people while Zoro lowered the anchor.

"Mm!" said the little girl. "This is really good! I'm Chimney and this is our cat, Gonbe, and Grandma Kokoro."

Chimney had bright blonde hair that almost looked green, dark blue eyes, a frog-like smile, and braided pigtails that stood straight up. She looked to be at least seven or eight. Gonbe, their supposed cat, in fact looked more like a rabbit to me. Kokoro, her grandmother, had the same colored hair as Chimney, wore way too much makeup for someone her age, and looked to be drunk.

"You guys aren't train robbers, are you?" Kokoro asked us, slurring her words.

"I'm Luffy, the man who'll be King of the Pirates," he said bluntly.

"Really?" Chimney asked.

"Yep," he replied.

Kokoro laughed at Luffy, admiring his ambition.

"Say, Chimney, that thing is a steamship, right?" Nami asked. "But with a shape like that… It wouldn't be able to sail!"

"It looked more like a train to me," I said. "But trains can't float on water, can they?"

"You've never seen something like that, have you?" she asked. "Well, then again, this is the only place you can find one. It's a sea train called the _Puffing Tom_."

"_Puffing Tom_?" Robin asked.

"It turns paddlewheels using a steam engine and runs on the sea railway," she explained further.

"A railway in the sea?!" Usopp asked, completely befuddled.

"Yep!" Chimney smiled. "It runs a little below the surface of the water and runs the same route every day. It can even take passengers, ships and mail!"

Luffy was already looking over into the water to find the railway. "She's right. There really is a railway!"

"It's really dangerous to run on the railway, you know!" Chimney said.

"How were we supposed to know?" Usopp asked. "The sign is facing the wrong way!"

"That guy should've known better. The one that was on the tracks," Luffy said, a little disappointed the frog was blow away.

"What?" she asked. "'That guy'? Are you talking about Yokozuna?"

"Yep, the frog," he said.

"He wouldn't die from that," Chimney said. "He always tries to defeat that train. He'll definitely show up again.

"He's sure got guts," Luffy praised. "Ok, then, I won't eat him!"

"Why were you even thinking about eating him in the first place…?" Nami asked.

"So," Kokoro said. "Where do you guys wanna go? The sea train can take you loads of fun places."

"Well, we've got our own ship, so we won't take the train," Nami said. "We'll just follow the log."

"Where's it pointing?" Chimney asked.

"East of here," she said, examining the needle.

"Must be Water Seven," Kokoro said. "The train that just came was heading from Blue Station from there. It's called the City of Water, really nice place. Above all, it's a city that made a name for itself with its shipyard. Their technology is the best in the world!"

"Then there's gotta be some amazing shipwrights there, right?!" Luffy said, getting excited.

"Not just some, it's a hangout for the world's best shipwrights!" she said.

"Yay!" I cheered happily. "We can fix the _Merry_!"

"Alright!" Luffy said, smiling hugely. "We're gonna go there and get a shipwright to join our crew for sure!"

"Oh, is that right?" Kokoro asked. "Then hold on a sec." She heaved up out of her chair and walked back into the station. She came back out about a minute later and handed two pieces of paper to Luffy. "Well, then," she grunted as she sat down again. "There's a map of the island and a reference letter. Give this to a guy named Iceberg and ask him to fix your ship good. Water Seven's a big place, so don't get lost."

We thanked them for their kindness and got back up on the _Merry_.

"It takes about a week for the log to be stored in Water Seven. Take is easy and have fun!" Kokoro said as we got ready to depart for the City of Water!

"Bye, Granny Kokoro, Chimney!" Nami said, waving goodbye.

From up in the crow's nest, I waved goodbye to them as well.

* * *

><p>"Oi, Maggie!" Nami called up to me. "Keep your eye out for the city; we'll be arriving sooner than expected!"<p>

"Aye, Nami-chan!" I called back, getting out my telescope.

Everyone on the deck talking about who they thought the new shipwright would look like. Luffy wanted him to be a big man, at least five meters tall. Sanji wanted it to be a pretty lady. Zoro brought up a good point: As long as they were skilled, who cared what they looked like?

I was super excited to have a new friend about to join our ranks. And we'd get the _Merry_ fixed as a bonus!

By then, I could hear the seagulls and knew that we had to be close. I put my eye to the lens of the telescope and looked all around, hoping to see the City of Water waiting for us.

"There it is!" I yelled, pointing at the silhouette of the city in the distance. "Water Seven!"

Everyone ran to the front of the ship to get a good look.

"Okay, guys! Paddle! We can see the island!" Luffy ordered.

"We've got enough wind, there's no need," Sanji pointed out.

As we got close enough to see details of the island, it became clear to all of us that the City of Water was named that for a reason. It looked like a giant fountain!

"Amazing!" Nami said, in awe of the city.

"Maybe to you…" I said. "But that's a death trap for us Devil Fruit users!"

Luffy laughed and said, "We'll be fine, Maggie!"

"She has a point…" Chopper muttered.

Some random person out fishing in the water beside told us that pirates should sail out in the open and that it was better is we sailed around to avoid attention.

As we sailed into the city, it became known to us that it was a city on the water. Canals were used in place of streets and the sidewalks were narrow and if you slipped, it would be a wet day for you.

I shivered at the thought of falling in. I was already clumsy enough on dry land, but when you added water into the mix, I would be a noodle trying to walk!

I couldn't deny the beauty of the city, despite its obvious dangers. The many shops and houses and people going about their daily lives in a way so foreign to us was a beautiful thing in and of itself.

"Woohoo!" Luffy cheered. "Let's hurry up and dock the ship!"

We were told to go out of the city to a small cape and wait to get our ship repaired. We were pirates after all. And the mere sight of pirates could scare everyone away!

Zoro started furling the sail as Sanji pulled out the anchor. I was about to start climbing down when I heard a huge snap. Before I knew it, the whole mast had broken and I was going down with it!

I started screaming as I held onto the flag pole for my life. I felt a small jerk and the mast stopped falling.

"What the hell did you do?!" Usopp yelled.

"Nothing!" Zoro said, holding up the mast single-handedly. "I just pulled the rope!"

"Maggie-chan!" Nami yelled. "Are you ok?!"

"Maggie-chan!" Sanji called in worriment.

"Y-yeah…!" I stuttered. "I'm good. Can you g-get me down…?"

"Hold on tight, Maggie!" Nami called up to me.

"I gotcha, Maggie!" Luffy called, stretching his arm up. He grabbed hold of my arm as I let go of the mast and brought me to safety.

I nearly collapsed onto the deck in fright as the rest of the guys helped Zoro put the mast back into its original upright position.

"Holy crap… Has the _Merry_ really taken this much damage?" he said.

Nami helped me up and said, "Are you ok?"

I nodded and looked up at the mast. "I don't think I'm going up there until after we get the ship fix, ok?"

Luffy laughed and said, "Close call!"

"I'll say…"

"Anyway, why aren't the people on this island scared of pirates?" Nami asked.

"Probably because pirates are just another customer to their shipyard," Zoro said, dusting his hands off.

"Or maybe they have bodyguards big enough to deal with pirates who cause a ruckus," Robin suggested, putting a hand on my shoulder. She smiled at me and asked if I was ok.

I nodded and said, "Yep, I'm ok!"

"I bet, considering the size of the city," Sanji said. "But we're customers so I doubt we have reason to worry."

Luffy and had already jumped off the ship and were running into town, but Nami yelled at them to stop. They both froze at the sound of her voice and looked back at the rest of us.

"You guys, come with me," she said, climbed down the ladder and onto the shore.

"Where?" Usopp asked.

"First, we'll take the reference letter from Kokoro-san and go find the man named Iceberg," she said. "We'll ask him to help us get the ship repaired. We also gotta find a place where we can cash in our gold."

"Alright then, let's go!" Luffy said. "To the City of Water!"

"We're forgetting something, Luffy," she said. "The gold."

"Ah…" he said.

Usopp made a makeshift wheelbarrow for the gold out of some scraps of wood in the storage room. Luffy was burdened with the task of wheeling it wherever they went.

"Be careful, Nami-san!" Sanji called after them.

"Aww… I wish we could've gone with them," Chopper said.

"Then let's go out together later," Robin suggested.

Chopper and I smiled hugely at Robin. "Really?!" we said together.

"I wonder if they have a bookstore!" he said.

"I'm sure they do," she said.

Chopper and I looked at each other with excitement.

"Yay! Bookshops!" we cheered together.

"Oi, Maggie-chan!" Nami called. "Wanna come with?"

I looked to Chopper and bit my lip. "Sorry!" I said to him. "Yeah, sure!" I called back, climbing down the rope ladder. "Maybe next time, Robin, Chopper-nii!" I said.

* * *

><p>We made our way into the city, rented an animal called a yagara that had seats strapped to its back to ride around the canals. We had to rent two yagaras that had two seats each, so I rode with Nami while Usopp and Luffy had to share. Usopp had to sit on top of the mound of gold for everyone to fit.<p>

The city was quaint and beautiful, but I was more focused on staying afloat than the markets full of exotic food.

Nami steered us all in the right direction to a shop that could exchange gold for bills. To get there, we had to go onto a water elevator to get to the second level of the city.

It was quite a terrifying experience, the water elevator. The ground literally rose up along with the water level and the yagaras jostled about, making me afraid of tipping over.

"Calm down, Maggie-chan," Nami said. "We'll be fine."

"Yeah…" I said, trying to cheer up.

The second level of Water Seven had a better view of the huge fountain. Before I knew it, we had to dock on along the sidewalk because Luffy was already running around.

Nami sighed and helped me onto the sidewalk. She grabbed Luffy by the collar and said, "Don't go running off like that."

"Hey, old guy!" he said, completely ignoring her. "What's with the crowd?"

I didn't even notice the crow because I was watching as Usopp trudged out of the yagara, carrying the gold over his shoulder. It looked like it was too much for him to bear. I couldn't help but giggle!

"A couple pirates were causing a ruckus down at Dock One, but it ended when the craftsmen knocked them out," said the old man. "There's no end to them, I swear."

"The shipwrights beat up the pirates?" Luffy asked.

"You guys must be voyagers," he said. "That crowd is full of onlookers that like to watch them work. The shipwrights from the Galley-La Company are admired by all the residents here. They're strong, and skilled, and they're the pride of Water Seven!"

"Wow, I'm looking forward to meeting them!" Luffy said happily.

Usopp finally gave up and dropped the bag of gold. "Luffy…" he panted. "I can't carry this!"

Luffy laughed and took the bag from him. I helped Usopp up and Nami said that we could come back after we exchanged the money.

* * *

><p>Three hundred million Berries was the total amount that Nami finally accepted for all our gold. And in three brief cases, each one hundred million was cashed in for safe keeping. But since Luffy was deemed too reckless, I was in charge of one of the brief cases. But even I was deemed too much of a liability after about a minute (and I hadn't even done anything…). Nami said only she and Usopp would look after the money.<p>

I had to ride with Luffy back to the shipyard. Usopp was so worried about someone stealing the money. He even wanted to go back to the ship and wait to get the _Merry_ fixed, which was surprising coming from him.

We docked up the yagaras next to the shipyard. The crowd had totally dispersed from earlier so the coast was clear for us to ask the shipwright for his services.

"Let's find… What's his name again?" Luffy asked.

"Iceberg-san," Nami supplied.

"Right, that's it!" he said. "Ice pops." He started to jump the fence into the shipbuilding station.

Right as he was about to enter, a man with a nose about as long as Usopp's, stopped him.

"Hold it!" he said. "You're an outsider, aren't you? Let's talk outside for now. Only authorized people can go inside the plant."

The man jumped the fence and walked over to us with a warm smile on his face.

"Do you have some business at this dock?" he asked.

"Yeah, we'd like to see Iceberg-san," Nami said, staring at his square-ish nose.

"Ah, you're customers, right?" he asked. Nami supplied him the letter of recommendation. As he read it, he said, "Oh, I see."

"So do you know this Iceberg person?" Nami asked.

"Know him?" he asked. "Well, Iceberg-san is the mayor of Water Seven."

"Really?" I asked.

He nodded. "Not only is he the mayor, he's the president of our company, Galley-La Company, and he also manages the sea train."

"Wow!" I said. "He sounds really cool."

"So where do we go to see him?" Nami asked.

"Well, he's a busy person," said the man. "So he's kinda hard to find."

"Can't you get in touch with him or something?" she asked.

"That's probably possible, but… Are you in a hurry?" he asked.

"Not really…" Nami said.

"But it is really important," I said. "Our ship is really hurt I almost fell off the ship from the crow's nest today when the mast broke in half."

"Wow that does sound bad… So you want to talk about having it repaired?" he asked.

I nodded.

"Where did you anchor your ship?" he asked, taking off his work belt and beginning to stretch his legs.

"The rocky cape…" Usopp said, confused.

"Well then, I'll go run and check the condition of your ship," he said. "It'll save some time when you see Iceberg-san. You can talk about the repair fee, too. I won't be long now… Let's say… Ten minutes?"

"It takes ten minutes to get there on a yagara?" Usopp asked.

"Heavens no," said the man. He got into a ready position and within the blink of an eye he was sprinting at the speed of light off towards our ship.

Someone behind us commented on the man's nature. "He runs freely around town. People call him the Mountain Wind," said a different man. "He's a shipwright foreman of Galley-La Company's Dock One… His name is Kaku."

"That was so cool!" I said. "He jumped from, like, two stories high!"

"Don't make light of my craftsmen," said the man.

He had purple hair and a red and pink striped blazer on. There was a woman next to him as well that was dressed like a secretary or possibly an assistant.

"Who's the weird guy…?" Luffy whispered to Usopp.

"Beats me," he said.

"Ordinary physical ability isn't good enough to build a bigger, better, faster ship," said the man. "By the way, Kalifa…"

"Yes, I've already checked," said the woman named Kalifa. "Straw Hat Luffy, pirate hunter Zoro, Nico Robin, and missing child Magnolia. Their group has those four members with bounties on their heads. Their total bounty is 242 million berries. It was formed in the East Blue. They're the Straw Hats and they currently have eight crewmembers."

"I see," said the purple-haired man. "I'm glad you came."

_How does she know so much about us…?!_ I thought.

"My name is Iceberg, the mayor of this city," he said. He pointed to a mouse in his blazer pocket and said, "This is the mouse I found earlier. His name is… let's see… Tyrannosaurus. I have to prepare his food and cage."

"I've already taken care of them, Iceberg-san," said Kalifa.

"That's my Kalifa," he said, smiling back at her.

"Thank you," she said, with a blank expression. She began to drone on and on about his dinner plans with someone from an important glass factory, and some more important business things he had scheduled.

"I don't want to," he said childishly.

"Well, I'll cancel them all, then," she said.

"I'm someone powerful enough to do things like that," he said proudly.

"You're definitely unfit to be mayor…" Usopp deemed.

"Isn't this the guy Granny was talking about?" Luffy asked.

"Yep," Nami said. She walked up to him and handed him the letter. "Please look at this. It's a reference letter."

He read over it and then proceeded to rip it up.

"What?!" Nami asked. "You won't?"

"Please!" I pleaded. "She really needs it!"

"We have money!" Nami added.

"The _Merry_ is beat up after our trips," Luffy said. "Please, pops!"

"Okay," he said.

"Yay!" I cheered. "Thank you!"

"Wait, but why did you rip it up?" Usopp asked.

"Her lipstick mark was unpleasant to my eyes," was his answer. "Granny Kokoro and I have been drinking pals for ages. Well, that being said, Kaku has already gone to make an assessment. The matter is already in progress. Don't worry." He yawned and stretched out his arms. "Since it's a boring day, why don't I show you around the factory?"

"Seriously?!" Luffy asked, excited.

"Well then, this way, please," Kalifa said.

"Let's do it!" Luffy said, following them.

All of a sudden, Usopp let out a girlish scream.

"What's wrong?" Nami asked.

"The… The… The money…" he stammered. "It's gone!"

"WHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTT?" Nami screamed.

_Oh dear…!_ I thought. _This is not good! Not good!_

"Then look for it!" she ordered.

"I can't find it!" he whimpered. "Ah! Over there!"

He pointed in the direction of the canals. There were two yagaras swimming along with our stolen cargo!

"Hey!" Usopp yelled. "Give it back, you bastards! Give us our money back!"

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	36. Fighting Amongst Ourselves

"That's the Franky Family…" Iceberg said, recognizing the thieves that took our money.

I ran over to Usopp, who was trying to catch up with them on land.

"I got this one!" I said. "Tick-Stop!"

I froze the men and their yagaras in the water so they couldn't go anywhere.

"Luffy, quick!" Usopp said. "Grab the money!"

All of a sudden, a man dropped off from one of the bridges from above the yagaras and roped the men in the yagaras out of their boats and into the water. Seeing this startled me, and such I lost my focus and the men were unfrozen. The man jumped into the boat and sped off.

"He's one of your shipwrights, right?" Usopp asked Iceberg.

"That's right," Iceberg said.

"Thanks!" Usopp called. "That belongs to us!"

But he kept going. Luffy was about to punch him, but a man came up and grabbed his fist.

The man had long, curly black hair and weird eyebrows and facial hair. He had a bird on his shoulder. He also sported a top had and yellow suspenders.

"I'll go," said the bird on his shoulder with an extremely high pitched voice.

I couldn't help it. I burst out laughing. It was just too funny!

The man looked at me with a deadly glare for a split second and then looked away.

_What the…?_ I thought. It almost felt like a murderous aura, but it must've been my imagination. He was one of Iceberg's shipwrights.

The man with the talking pigeon hopped onto the yagara and pressured Paulie, the second money thief, to take it back.

Soon, the yagara was swimming back to us.

"I'm very sorry about this," Iceberg said. "Please let us take care of our idiot coworker."

"Well, please excuse him," Kalifa said. "Consider it good that the money wasn't stolen by the Franky Family."

"Franky Family?" Nami asked. "Those weird-looking guys?"

"The Franky Family is a group of ship demolition workers," Kalifa explained.

"Demolition workers? They didn't look like decent craftsmen…" Nami said.

"Yes, they're also bounty hunters," she said. "Every time they find pirates coming through the city, they make a scene."

"If they crush the pirates who come to our town, then they take their ship, too," Iceberg said. "They demolish the ship and sell the useable lumber. That's how they work."

"That's really mean…" I said. "The pirates never did anything to them!"

"Well, if you become their victims, not even bones will remain," he said.

I gulped and took a step behind Luffy.

"They didn't look that strong!" Luffy said, happy-go-lucky as always.

"Those were just the underlings," Iceberg said grimly. "Whatever you do, don't underestimate the family's boss, Franky, who's behind them."

I looked behind me and saw that the pigeon man was holding the thief by the arm. The yagara was docked behind them as they walked towards us.

"We brought him over, Iceberg-san," said the pigeon. The man carried our two brief cases as well.

"Thanks, Lucci," Iceberg said.

"We're sorry that idiot caused you trouble," the pigeon apologized. "Coo coo! Now, apologize to them, Paulie!" The man passed us the money.

"Thanks," Usopp said.

"Sorry, guy," the one named Paulie said. It didn't sound like he was too sorry.

Lucci hit Paulie on the head with a hammer because he didn't properly apologize. That made Paulie mad and he decided to attack him with ropes. Even after a couple of attacks, Lucci took no damage.

"Stop it Paulie," Iceberg said.

Paulie rolled his eyes, embarrassed that he lost.

"Coo coo. Well, sorry for the fuss," the pigeon said. "I'm Rob- No, I mean, Hattori the pigeon. And this is Rob Lucci. He works here. Nice to meet you. Coo coo!"

"Oh, so it's ventriloquism?" Nami said.

"Good job!" Usopp and Luffy congratulated. "I didn't even notice!"

"Stop, stop, it's no big deal-"

"He's just a weirdo who can't talk to people properly!" Paulie jeered, lighting a cigar. All of a sudden, he freaked out a pointed at Nami. "What's with that woman?!" he screamed, blushing profusely.

"What…?" Nami asked.

"You're shameless!" he yelled. "You're showing your legs too much! This is a workplace for men! Look how you're dressed!"

"Paulie, calm down," Kalifa said.

"You, too, Kalifa!" he shouted. He looked to me next and said, "Even the younger generation is leaning towards lewd attire!"

"What…?" Nami and I asked each other.

_I'm a conservative, modest person… I don't dress like Nami!_ I thought.

"Wear pants, log pants!" he shouted.

"Long pants…? Eww!" I said, disgusted. I had to wear long pants for years when I was with my dad. They were always too big, too.

Luffy started laughing, amused at the peculiar attitude of the man.

"Well, let's just go in already," Iceberg said quickly.

We waited outside a huge, stone door as Lucci and Paulie opened it with their bare hands.

"Usopp, be sure to keep an eye on the money, alright?" I said.

"Yeah, of course," he said. "Here, why don't you hold onto one, too. 'kay?"

He trusted one into my hands. "U-um! Nami-chan said-"

"Well, they're too heavy for me to carry both of them, so if she yells, tell her it's my fault," he said, running inside the shipyard.

"O-ok…" I said, following after him.

"Luffy, make sure you guard us good, alright?" Usopp yelled.

"Got it!" he said. "Leave it to me!"

The shipyard was ginormous! They were building a galleon in one area while the workers worked on even more projects elsewhere. All the laborers greeted Iceberg happily as they continued working.

Luffy started window shopping for a shipwright to join our crew, but no one had agreed yet.

I stayed away from Nami just in case she noticed that I was carrying the case instead of Usopp. He looked fascinated with all the fancy equipment and wanted to know how they worked. I tagged along beside him, learning new things about wood and cannons.

"Look at this one!" he said, pointing to a shiny, copper cannon. "It's so long! I bet it's really expensive! I wonder if they'd let me try firing it…"

"I doubt it," I said. "I mean, it's a shipyard, not a firing range."

"Yeah, but now we've got the big bucks, Maggie," he said. "We could buy some cannons like that for the _Merry_."

"But we have to see how much it costs to repair her before we start buying new things," I said.

"You're right…" he said. "Maybe we could-"

All of a sudden, we both were tackled to the ground and knocked unconscious.

* * *

><p>I woke up to the sound of cheering.<p>

"Good work you guys, you got the money!" said someone.

"We also brought back a bargaining chip, boss!" said another man. "We can trade the girl for the other one hundred million the Straw Hats have! The other guy was really weak, so we just beat him up and stole their money."

_Wha… what?!_ I thought.

"Great thinking," said the first man. "Tie her up."

"Got it, boss!" said another man.

I heard many sets of footsteps walk towards me. As I opened my eyes, I was surrounded by men with rope.

Just as I was about to scream in terror, one of them covered my mouth with his hand while the rest tied me up.

"Shh, little girl," said the man. "Your friends will be here soon!"

They bound my arms, legs, blindfolded, and gagged me. I was completely helpless.

"Here take five million for a kick-ass party," said the first man. "It's my treat to you for doing a good job."

All of a sudden, I heard an explosion.

"Who's trying to defy the Franky Family?!" one of the men said.

"Huh? It's the weak guy from earlier!" said another.

_Usopp…? It's Usopp! They've come to save me so soon!_ I thought.

"I didn't know you could still stand," said another.

"Give me Maggie back and the money you stole!" he yelled.

"'Give me the money back'?" said the first guy. "Then are you one of the Straw Hat underlings?"

"That's right, boss!" said another man. "Since he's with Straw Hat Luffy, I expected him to be a really strong pirate, but then-"

"That's none of your business!" Usopp yelled with intense anger in his voice.

"You've got guts to come get the girl and the money back by yourself," said the boss. "But I can't let you have them back. If you want the girl, you can trade her for the rest of your money, but otherwise, she's staying with us."

"Give them back!" he yelled. "We have to… have our ship repaired… That money is ours to repair our ship! You jerks can't keep them!"

_He's alone…? _I thought_. Usopp, you can do it! I believe in you!_

The boss laughed at his efforts. "What's got you so worked up?" he asked. "Looks like you love your ship quite a bit. But no matter what happens to your ship, this money is already ours, and so is the girl until you pay up the rest of your money. And unfortunately for you, no matter what we steal from pirates, we won't be accused of committing a crime. This is money you stole from somewhere anyway. So, let us have all of it. You can take the girl back and go on your merry way. But it's too bad for Straw Hat Luffy. He has such a useless underling that can't even babysit a girl and a briefcase."

I heard a thud and then Usopp started coughing.

_No! Don't beat him up!_ I thought powerlessly.

"Guys, have some fun with him later," said the boss. "But remember, don't touch the girl. She needs to be in top-shape for the deal. I'm gonna take this money and go shopping." He laughed as his voice got fainter and fainter, telling me he was leaving the room, or wherever we were.

"Special Attack!" Usopp yelled. "Exploding Star!"

I heard his attack detonate seconds later.

_Yay! _I cheered._ Go Usopp!_

"Remember this, long-nose. My name is Franky…" he said. His voice was still faint, I could barely hear it. "And if you want to leave this town alive, you shouldn't cross me."

"Wh-what're you doing?!" he yelled. "Let go of me!"

"Ha!" one of the underlings laughed. "Such a pathetic weapon won't work on us!"

_Usopp…!_ I thought, heartbroken.

"See ya, long-nose. Thanks for the money!" the boss, Franky said.

"Give it back!" he yelled. "Give them both back!"

The rest of the underlings started laughing as I heard punches being thrown.

"Give them… back…" I heard him struggle to say.

I started crying through the blindfold. If I wasn't tied up, I would've helped him kick all of their butts!

"Give them back…!" he struggled again.

I heard more sounds of punching and kicking as Usopp groaned and grunted in pain after each one.

_Usopp…!_ I thought, distraught.

_Maggie. Maggie darling, you can help your friend, _It was my mom's voice.

_What…? _I thought._ How?!_

_All that emotion, let it out as time energy, _she cooed.

_What's that mean? _I asked.

_I'll help you the first time, but that's it, alright?_

I nodded.

I felt this weird sensation inside of me. It felt like small balls were popping out of my skin everywhere. And as soon as they slid out, they were gone. I created bullets made out of time energy!

I heard a bunch of people yell.

"What the hell was that?!" someone asked.

"I saw the girl do something!" another said.

"Screw what boss said, let's teach 'em both a lesson!" said the first.

"Yeah!" agreed all the others.

My eyes widened under the blindfold as I heard the footsteps coming towards me. I tensed up, bracing for the impact I knew was coming.

The first was a kick to my leg, hard and very painful. Then, two men lifted up my arms.

I braced myself again.

I couldn't even keep up with all the punching and kicking into my body.

_I have to do it again…!_ I thought. _Time Bullets!_

But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't focus enough to do it again.

That's when someone punched my cheek.

"Ha!" said the assailant. "Let's beat her till she's at heaven's gate!"

I winced at every punch, which most were now directed at my stomach and face. I cried profusely as they kept going and going and going. I almost wished to be hit into unconsciousness because the pain was unbearable.

And I got my wish, finally.

* * *

><p>I woke up on a comfy bed, my bed. I tried to move, but everything hurt like heck. As I opened my eyes, I could see out of both, so I knew my eyepatch was off. I tried to move my left arm, but it wouldn't bend.<p>

_A cast?_ I thought. _Must be…_

My right arm, however, did move.

My ears started ringing as I heard yelling coming from a room nearby.

"It has nothing to do with that money being stolen!" said a voice.

_Luffy? _I asked. _Is that Luffy?_

"Then why are you saying stupid stuff like that we're gonna get a new ship?!" someone else yelled. I think it was Usopp, yeah, it had to be him.

"Hey, stop it, both of you!" yelled Zoro.

_They're arguing about the ship? _I asked._ Maybe I should get up…_

I tried to sit up, but my whole body felt sore.

_Can't I do anything? _I thought. _Oh yeah, there is that…_

I gingerly set my right hand on my stomach and said, "Time Mend."

It took a couple of tries to fully heal myself and I was a bit exhausted after the fact, but I sat up and started unwrapping all the bandages and gauze off of me.

"Don't get so worked up, this is important," I heard Nami say.

I looked around the room and saw my eyepatch. I quickly tied it over my eye and exited the room, trying to find where everyone else was.

I followed the sound of yelling into the room in question. I poked my head into the doorway and saw everyone inside, except Robin.

"Usopp, you need to rest or you won't get better!" Chopper was saying.

Usopp freaked out and yelled, "Who cares?! How can I be quiet when our captain casually says we'll get a new ship?!"

I gasped_. Is it true…? Does Luffy really want to abandon_ Merry_?_

"It's not casual!" Luffy yelled back. "I made the decision after agonizing over it!"

_So it is true… _I thought somberly.

"Maggie-chan…?" Nami asked, seeing me in the doorway.

Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at me.

"Maggie-chan!" Sanji greeted. "You're up!"

I nodded, staring at Luffy.

"Maggie, you should be in bed-" Chopper tried to say.

"I'm ok," I said, not taking my eyes off of my captain. I walked hesitantly into the room. "Are… Are we really getting a new ship?" I asked.

"No," Usopp said firmly.

"Yes, we are," Luffy overruled.

"But… why?" I asked. "Can't they fix her?"

"Yeah, Luffy!" Usopp asked. "Tell us. If it isn't about the money, they what is it?!"

Luffy's eyes were twitching with anger and a hint of sadness.

"Say it!" Usopp demanded. "I won't accept it unless I hear a good reason!"

He looked extremely enraged at his crewmember. "The _Merry_ can no longer be repaired!" he finally burst out.

I stopped breathing for a while, shocked at the words that came out of my captain's mouth.

"What… did you just say?" Usopp asked.

"Don't make me repeat myself," he said. "The _Merry_ can no longer be repaired. No matter what we do, she won't be fixed. I wouldn't say something like that otherwise."

Usopp fell to his knees in agony. "This ship?" he asked. "Are you talking about this ship that we're on board right now?"

"That's right," Luffy said calmly. "This ship will sink soon."

"What're you talking about, Luffy?" Usopp asked.

"It's the truth, they told us at the shipyard," Luffy explained. "They said that she can't even reach the next island."

"Oh really?" Usopp challenged. "So you were told by strangers you just met today and gave up just like that?"

"What did you just say?" he asked.

"Just because first-class shipwrights told you that this is it… you gave up just like that?!" he yelled. "We've traveled together all this time! We made it through all sorts of waves and battles! She's our dear friend! And you're gonna abandon her in a place like this?! Is that how little this ship means to you, Luffy?!"

Chopper tried to talk him out of yelling because he started coughing violently, but Usopp wouldn't listen. In fact, he told Chopper to step out of the way.

"What?" Chopper asked.

"I'm not done talking with him," he said.

"Usopp…" Nami said.

Luffy'd had it. "Then can you make an accurate assessment?!" he bellowed out. "We don't have a shipwright on this ship. That's why we asked them to check her!"

"Fine then," he spat back. "We don't have to ask those guys to fix her! I'll repair her, as I always have! It's never done us any harm, now has it? Come on, let's start now. You guys can help me!"

"Usopp wait," Sanji said.

Usopp started muttering about not having enough wood. He was completely ignoring everyone else. He was blindsided by his love for our great ship.

"You're not a shipwright, Usopp!" Luffy howled again.

"Luffy!" Nami yelled at him.

"Yeah, so what?" Usopp hissed. "But I don't trust those irresponsible guys who easily give up on a ship just because it belongs to someone else by taking advantage of their position as a shipwright!"

"Usopp…" Nami whimpered.

"This must be a lesson," he said. "We gotta protect our own ship by ourselves! I know I won't. I'll never give up… on this ship!"

He burst into tears by the end of the sentence.

"It was probably a convincing argument, huh," he said. "The Luffy I know would've believed in the strength of the _Merry_ first, rather than buying those guys' sales talk!" He grabbed Luffy by the collar. "How can you make a decision like that, suddenly acting all captain-like?! I misjudged you Luffy!"

"Wait a sec, Usopp!" Nami said, trying to mediate. "Luffy, too, first-"

"Stay out of this, Nami!" Luffy yelled. "This is something I decided! I won't change my mind. No matter what you say now, we're going to get a new ship. We'll say goodbye to the _Merry_ here!"

They were at each other's throats! It was scary to see them so angry at each other…

"Don't be ridiculous! I won't allow that!" Usopp rejected. "Listen, it's not like everyone can live looking ahead like you do! I can't just leave our wounded friend here and move on!"

"Even if she is a friend, ships and humans are different!" he roared back, yanking out of Usopp's grip.

"They're the same," Usopp implored. "The _Merry_ has the strength in her to go on!"

"Hey, that's enough you guys," Sanji said, stepping in with a firm tone.

But they just kept yelling over everyone who tried to intercede. It was useless to talk sense into them at this point. They were just too irate to knock some sense into.

Luffy took it too far by punching Usopp into the ground. "Don't think that you're the only one who feels pain over this!" he yelled. "Everyone feels the same way!"

"Then why decide to get a new ship?!" Usopp countered.

"Fine! If you don't like what I decide that much, then get off this-"

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" I yelled, bursting into tears. "You guys are friends! You're not supposed to say things like that to each other!"

"Sorry," Luffy said, calming down a bit. "You're right, Maggie. I just-"

"That's ok, Luffy," Usopp said. "That's how you really feel, isn't it?"

"What?" Luffy asked, completely taken aback.

"Go ahead," he said. "Cut off your useless friends one after the other and move on. If you're gonna abandon the _Merry_… why don't you do that to me, too?!"

"Don't say things like that, Usopp," Sanji warned.

"No, I'm serious," he said. "I've been thinking about this for a while. To be honest, I've been thinking that I can't keep up with your monstrous strength. Like today, I can't even watch over our money, or even Maggie! I just keep causing you guys trouble. You don't need weak friends, right? You're the man who'll be King of the Pirates. But I don't have to go that high up. Thinking back, all that's tying us together is when you asked me to get on the ship. We don't have to travel together when we have a difference of opinion!"

He stormed his way over to the door that lead to the deck and opened it.

"Where are you going?" Zoro asked.

"Where I'm going is my own business," he replied curtly. "I have nothing to do with you guys anymore."

"Usopp-nii…?" I asked, following him out. "Don't go!"

I tried to hug him, but he pushed me away.

"Stop it, Maggie," he said. "I'm leaving the gang."

"What…?" I asked. "No, you can't! Usopp-nii-"

"Forget it," he said. "I'm not a part of your so-called family anymore."

I felt like I was punched in the gut. I fell to my knees, tears running down my face silently as I watched him walk out of the room and shut the door behind him.

"What're you doing?!" Nami asked. "Luffy! Is it okay to let him go like this?! Hey, go after him! Stop him! We've come this far together! Is it ok to leave everything like this?! Usopp is our friend!"

He didn't say anything.

"Stop him!" she shrieked, starting to cry as well. "Hey, Luffy… You're the captain, right?!"

Still nothing came out of his mouth.

"Why aren't you saying anything?" she asked.

Finally, she just got up and walked out of the room, yelling after Usopp. Sanji and Chopper followed after him.

"Tick-Tock…" I whispered, stopping time.

I slowly stood up, wiping the tears away from my eyes and putting on a serious face. As I walked out of the room, I saw that Usopp was already off the ship and walking away.

I jumped down the rope ladder and ran for him.

"Usoppp-nii!" I said, grabbing his hand. "Please come back."

He didn't even look at me. He just pulled his hand out of my grasp and froze in time.

I slumped onto the ground again, letting time pass again.

I couldn't even hear the words of my friends, yelling at him to come back. I couldn't hear their cries and pleas. I couldn't hear any of it.

And I especially didn't hear Usopp challenging Luffy to a duel.

No, I didn't hear any of it.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	37. Falling Apart

**Author's Note:**

**Ok, I'm super excited because we've hit a milestone, guys! Over 150 reviews, 200+ favs and followers, 50k views?! I never thought one of my stories would ever become this popular, let alone on an idea I thought I would never finish and delete later. And it's all thanks to you guys! I can't tell you how much it means to have your support. You guys keep me typing, I can tell you that much. I thank you all for sticking it out this far and hope to improve my writing skills along Maggie's journey with the Straw Hats. Please continue to give me criticism, because I really do consider all of it. I'll keep cranking out some more chapters for you guys when I have the time.**

**Thank you all so much!**

**~Momolovesanime**

* * *

><p>I sat on my bed, listening to Luffy and Nami argue downstairs in the boys' room. Usopp had challenged Luffy to a fight at ten o'clock over the <em>Merry<em>. I just couldn't believe any of this was happening! And Robin hadn't shown up yet, either, so I was beginning to wonder about her as well.

I trudged my way up to the deck when it became time for the duel to begin. Luffy ordered us to stay on the ship no matter what, but I didn't have energy to go anywhere. I don't even think I had the energy to cry anymore.

"Can't we stop them?" Chopper asked. "Usopp is wounded quite badly!"

"If you can't bear to watch this, go inside," Zoro said coldly.

_I just might…_ I thought.

It was a windy, dark night. Not even the stars decided to shine and the moon was but a slit in the sky, giving off minimal light.

I didn't even pay attention to the fight because my heart was already broken when Usopp decided to leave.

When it was over, all I remember was Chopper running to try and save Usopp, but Sanji held him back.

"Let's vacate the ship," Zoro said finally. "We can't come back to this ship, so…"

And then, I looked down at Luffy, who was waiting by the ship. My heart shattered when I saw that he was crying, too.

* * *

><p>To have a happily family… that was all I asked. And I thought I found it, too. That was the sad part.<p>

Robin still wasn't back by the morning, and Sanji had waiting by the cape all night in case she went back to the ship. He came back to the inn with empty hands. I, however, still couldn't find the energy to function.

It was around midday when Chopper came into the room with Sanji.

"Maggie…" he said. "We're gonna go look for Robin, do you want to come with us?"

I shook my head and said, "No."

"Are you feeling ok?" he asked. "How're your wounds from yesterday?"

"My heart…" I said. "It's got a hole in it and it really hurts…"

"Maggie-chan…" Sanji said.

Chopper hopped onto the bed with a stethoscope, freaking out. He thought I was being literal.

"No, Chopper-nii…" I said. "I didn't mean it like that."

"Oh…" he said.

"Robin's gone and now... Now Usopp-nii's gone too," I said, struggling to hold back the tears. "Is this really the end of the Straw Hats…?"

"Maggie-chan, don't talk like that," Sanji said. "This isn't the end. We're gonna find Robin-chan, I know it."

"But what if we don't?" I asked. "What do we do then?"

He didn't reply.

"I don't want to lose another member…" I said, finally letting the tears fall.

"Maggie, I think you're depressed," Chopper said. "You need to get out and have some fun!"

"Yeah, come on, Maggie-chan!" Sanji said. "Why not come with us?"

"I don't want-"

"Doctor's orders!" Chopper said. "Now let's go!"

* * *

><p>I was dragged along with Chopper and Sanji to go look for our missing crewmember. Barely anyone was outside at all. Later, we found out that Iceberg, the man from yesterday, had been shot five times and was in the hospital.<p>

It seemed that the situation couldn't get any worse.

But then, it did.

An announcement over the loud speaker came on and said that everyone needed to evacuate to higher ground by midnight because a big storm surge called Aqua Laguna was coming around then.

_Water Seven is cursed… _I thought bitterly._ Nothing but bad things can happen to us here._

We rented a yagara and kept looking for Robin. That's when Chopper started thinking about how Usopp didn't know about the storm coming.

"Hey, didn't you say you left something on the ship?" Sanji asked Chopper.

"What?" he asked. "No I didn't-"

"You said that, right?" Sanji hinted strongly.

"Oh, yeah!" he said. "I did!"

"Then we've got no choice," Sanji said happily, turning the yagara around.

Our new destination was the _Merry_ in attempt to warn Usopp about Aqua Laguna. All they did was yell indirectly at Usopp to evacuate in hopes that he'd hear them and then we ran away before he realized it was us.

I do admit that I did laugh when they were yelling at each other. It was really funny because they were being so painfully obvious that they still cared about him.

We then decided to head out to Blue Station, just in case Robin was getting on the sea train.

Sanji got one of the new papers along the way. The news didn't even surprise me. The papers were blaming us, the Straw Hats, for the attempted murder of Iceberg. Luffy's, Zoro's, Robin's, and my wanted poster were plastered on the front of the papers all over town.

To be safe, I put my hair into a short hair pony tail (it looked more like a nub) and took off my eyepatch.

"Disguise: acquired," I said, smiling again.

"Good idea, Maggie," Chopper said.

"Well, it looks like this afternoon's train has already left," Sanji said, looking at the board. "But one's departing tonight for Enies Lobby."

"I wonder if Robin got on that sea train," Chopper said.

"If she did, things can't get any worse…" I said.

"No kidding," Sanji agreed. "Water Seven is already too big to handle…"

"Maybe… Maybe I did something to upset her at the bookstore…" Chopper said.

"Or maybe because I didn't go…" I said.

"You're both dummies," Sanji said light-heartedly. "There's no way that's the case."

"I hope Luffy and the others haven't been caught…" I said.

"Luffy's fine," Sanji said. "The one I'm worried about is Nami-san."

The ever-strengthening wind picked up for a second and almost lifted up my skirt, but thankfully I kept it down. The breeze whistled through the empty streets as discarded newspapers and leaves were the only pedestrians to touch the ground of the lower level of Water Seven.

"It's like a ghost town…" I said. "Maybe we should evacuate too…"

"Wait a second…" Chopper said, putting his snout into the air. "This scent… Could it be…?"

He took off running into the town.

"Chopper-nii!" I said, running after him. "What's wrong?"

He didn't reply as I kept following after him. Sanji eventually caught up with me and asked me what the matter was.

"He just… took off!" I panted, still running.

He suddenly rounded a sharp corner and ran down the stairs, but near the end he slipped and fell.

"Chopper!" Sanji said. "Are you ok?"

We walked down the stairs and saw him staring at something.

I looked up, wondering what he was staring at.

"I knew she'd be here…" Chopper said.

"Robin…" I said, heart pounding violently in my chest.

The canal was all that was keeping me from running into her arms and hugging her. She was on the other side of the canal on one of the sidewalks, just standing there and looking at us.

"Robin-chan!" Sanji exclaimed. "Where've you been?! We looked all over for you! Everyone's so worried. Let's go back to the inn together! A lot's happened while you were gone, I'll explain later. This distance is a bit annoying… I'll be right over-"

"No, that's ok," she said. "Stay there."

"What…?" I asked. "Robin, aren't you coming back with us?"

"No," she said. "I won't… I won't return to you guys. We're parting ways here in this town."

"Robin-chan?" Sanji asked. "What're you saying?"

"Robin…?" I asked, feeling the tears welling up. "You're joking, right?"

"You must be worried about the newspaper…" Sanji said. "Don't worry about it! None of us believe it. Being falsely accused happens all the time-"

"I'm sorry for pinning an unreasonable crime on you guys," she said. "But the article is telling the truth. It really was me who infiltrated the mayor's residence last night."

"What…?" Sanji said, shocked.

Well, we all were. Our mouths were almost to the floor in disbelief.

"I carry a darkness within me that you guys don't know about," she said. "It'll destroy you someday. As a matter of fact, I'm pinning this crime on you and planning to run away. The situation will get worse."

"Robin-" I said.

"Why I'm doing this?" she asked, guessing what was on my mind. "That's something you don't need to know."

"Robin-chan! I don't believe it!" Sanji yelled. "What happened to you?!"

"Robin! Let's go back together!" Chopper screamed.

She just shook her head. "Although I only spent a short time with you, after today… I'll never see you again," she said.

A jolt that felt like a lightning bolt flooded my body all at once.

_No… _I thought desperately._ No… Not again. I don't want to lose another mother…!_

"Thank you for being nice to a person like me," she said, turning around. "Goodbye."

Her steps walking away from us sounded like thunder crashing. No one had words to say for what just happened. But I wasn't just going to stand idly by and watch her leave.

"Wait!" I screamed, running towards the end of the sidewalk. "Robin, wait! Don't go! Please, don't go!"

She didn't reply, only kept walking.

I almost jumped into the water to swim after her, but Sanji held me back.

"Robin!" I shrieked, tears racing down my face. "Don't go…! Don't leave us… Please…"

I sunk to the ground, trying to think of any reason why she would leave us.

Sanji jumped in the water after her, calling her name frantically.

"Sanji, don't," Chopper said.

"Robin-chan!" he kept calling.

"Sanji, I lost sight of her!" Chopper screamed.

Chopper eventually coaxed him to get out of the water. He took off his soaked shirt and looked in the direction of where she left.

"Chopper…" Sanji said, lighting his cigarette. "Take Maggie-chan and go join Luffy and the others. Tell them everything that just happened without leaving a single word out."

"What about you?" Chopper asked.

"We'll part ways here for a bit," he said. "Don't worry, I won't do anything reckless."

I hugged Sanji desperately and said, "Don't let her leave, ok?"

"Of course, Maggie-chan!" he said.

* * *

><p>It was late afternoon by the time Chopper had found Luffy by following his scent. He was hiding under a bridge with Zoro and Nami. We found a safe place to hide up on one of the rooftops.<p>

"Hey… Where's Sanji?" Nami asked.

I took my hair town from the pony tail and put my eyepatch back on.

"Well…" Chopper said.

He began to tell the whole story about our atrocious encounter with Robin. I tried to hold back tears just thinking about it.

Luffy got really mad. "Did Robin really say that?!" he yelled.

I nodded.

"Yeah," Chopper said somberly.

"We all were prepared for it, right?" Zoro said, clasping one of his swords. "Even though it was for a short time, we let Robin, who showed up as an enemy, come on board. It'd be embarrassing if we ran away because we got scared." He was looking directly at me when he said all of that. "It's about time we settled this matter. Is that woman a foe or a friend? She said she wouldn't see us after today, right? That sounds like she's declaring that she'll do something that could worsen the situation before the day is over. If it's possible to make the situation worse, there's only one thing she'd do."

"This time for sure… Assassinate the mayor," Nami said.

"But since she's pinning this on us, it's possible to this is a trap to lure us to the scene of the crime," Zoro said.

"Hey!" Nami said. "You already sound like Robin is really our enemy!"

"I'm talking about the possibility," he said. "It's not that I've decided that she's one or the other. But, if something does happen, it'll be tonight. Are we going?"

"We are," Luffy said, unwavering.

"I don't mind going… but there's a problem," Nami said. "Sanji-kun saw Robin walking with someone, right? Iceberg-san said the same thing. She was with someone with a mask on, but it wasn't any of us. That person must be the reason why Robin suddenly changed."

"He must be making Robin do bad things!" Chopper agreed.

"That would be good news for us," Zoro said. "But if this guy's Robin's friend, then that's not good."

"But someone with a mask on a big clue, that's the problem," Nami said. "So, what's our goal?"

"We'll capture Robin," Luffy said, standing up. "Otherwise, we won't know anything."

"That's true…" Zoro said, standing up as well. "But hasn't the government been trying to capture her for twenty years? This isn't gonna be easy…"

"But if we want to know the truth, it's the only way," Nami said, joining Luffy and Zoro in standing up.

"Okay, I'll do my best, too!" Chopper said.

Everyone looked to me.

"You in?" Zoro asked.

I nodded, joining them on my feet. "She wouldn't do this kinda stuff if she was in her right mind," I said. "I'm in."

"Well, then," Luffy said. "Let's go to Galley-La Company!"

* * *

><p>We were all hiding in a tree outside the Galley-La Company main headquarters, waiting patiently for something to happen.<p>

There were guards everywhere. They lined the whole building with the shipwrights and foremen of the shipyard. I began to get a little nervous, but stiffened up my upper lip. This was for Robin's sake, I reminded myself.

"You can stretch your arm and go flying there, right?" Nami asked our captain.

"But after the commotion starts, ok?" Luffy said. "Can you get us in without being seen, Maggie?"

I nodded, saluting him. "Aye, Captain Luffy-nii! You can count on me!"

And with that, we kept waiting and waiting for something to happen.

Until…

BOOM!

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	38. Betrayal

"An explosion!" I yelled, shocked.

I took out my telescope and watched most the craftsmen rush into the house. Some brought water to put out the fire, and some stayed on edge, looking around wildly.

"What do we do?!" Chopper asked.

"Stay here for now," Nami said. "Keep watching. We'll wait for an opening."

I nodded, looking back into the telescope.

"They're like ants running around after the pile's been messed up…" I noticed. "Oh! They're going after someone!"

There were two people running amongst the gunshots and yells of angry men, and half of the others that stayed still at their posts went to go chase after them.

"It's gotten quite noisy," Zoro said. "What should we do? Should we go in soon?"

"Hm?" Chopper asked, looking around. "Where's Luffy?"

I nearly dropped my telescope in surprise. "What? He's gone?!" I asked, looking around.

"That dumbass!" Nami yelled, furious. "Come on, we're going in!"

We all jumped down from the tree and sprinted down the street towards the manor.

"Robin might be in that commotion, right?" asked Chopper. "What's the plan?"

"Depending on how you look at it, we've lucked out," Nami huffed. "When Luffy goes into enemy territory, do you think he'd go around to the back or the side?"

"Not a chance," we all replied, knowing our captain too well.

"I bet by now he's marched in from the front by either jumping in or running, and now he's getting chased around with no idea where to go, don't you think?" she said.

_Yep, that sounded exactly like our captain…_ I thought.

"Definitely," Zoro said.

"From the shipwrights' perspective, Luffy is the ringleader of the culprit group," she continued. "Once he jumps in, I bet everyone's attention will go to him!"

We turned a corner. I could see the hedge fence that surrounded the property and heard all of the commotion going on in the distance. This plan was perfect!

"I bet there's an opening somewhere in the defense," said Nami. "We just gotta get through that opening and mix in to the commotion."

"So thanks to Luffy, the best chance to infiltrate is right now, huh?" Zoro said.

"Then it should be ok to jump in, right?" asked Chopper.

"Are you guys ready?" she asked.

We all replied with a hearty, "Yes!"

And with a jump full of vigor and determination, we landed in the back yard of the manor.

But, what met us there was not expected.

Shipwrights, tons of them, lined the perimeter of the building.

"WHAT PART OF THIS IS LIGHT?!" yelled Zoro.

"Maggie!" Nami yelled.

"O-on it!" I stuttered, panicking.

A bullet whizzed past my ear as I stopped time and extended it to everyone.

"Where the hell is Luffy?!" Nami asked, starting to run around the building.

We all followed her. As I looked back, I saw a whole spray of bullets that undoubted would've hit us if I'd been a second later.

"How should I know?!" spat Zoro.

"What do we do?!" she asked.

"Now that it's come to this, it's like we've been caught in the act anyway," Zoro said. "Let's bust in."

"But they'll come in after us, won't they?" I asked.

"Then let me go and I'll deal with them," he said.

"But they're not our enemies!" Chopper said.

"I'll use the back of my swords!" he said, skidding to a halt. "You guys keep going and look for Robin. I'll buy you more time."

"If you say so…" I said, letting him freeze.

"You're serious, Maggie?!" Nami yelled.

"He said he'd buy us time!" I said. "Well, pun not intended… But let's go, come on! We only have so much time before I gotta let us go!"

"Yeah, you're right," she said. "Let's look for Robin!"

* * *

><p>When we reached the main building, all of the guards were lying on the ground either dead or very unconscious. I let everyone go to save my stamina for when I'd really need it. Sometime later, as we wandered throughout the house, we found Zoro who was just as lost as us. He tagged along with us and soon enough, we found a door Nami was most sure Robin was behind.<p>

Nami held out her arm for me to slow down as Zoro ran ahead of us.

"You go ahead of us!" she said. "Cut down the door."

He was slightly irritated that we made him go first, but he was the strongest out of the four of us, so it made sense to me at least. He jumped into the air rather flashily and cut the door in four parts, hurtling into the room just as another familiar face did.

"Where's Robin?!" Luffy yelled, crashing through the wall into the room with Paulie.

There was a dramatic scene unfolding before us. Lucci, Kaku, Kalifa, and one other were the ones who framed us, I figured, because there were discarded masks on the floor. Iceberg, who was also on the floor, had more wounds than he had yesterday. Robin was there, too.

My heart fluttered when I saw her face. I couldn't help but smile.

"Robin!" I cheered.

"Straw Hat…" Iceberg struggled to say. "Paulie…"

"What the hell….?" Paulie asked, looking confused at the faces of his friends.

Lucci glared menacingly at Paulie. "We're Government intelligence agents," he said. "You'd forgive us if we apologized, right? We worked together every day."

"Stop talking," he said, stepping forward. "How dare you mock us!"

He ran for them, filling with ferocity.

"Don't, Paulie!" Iceberg yelled.

He threw an attack with knives attached to ropes at his former friend. Lucci dodged all of them easily and ran towards Paulie with his hands still in his pocket.

"Finger Pistol," Lucci said, plunging a finger into his chest.

My mouth dropped in awe. I didn't even think such a feat was possible!

Paulie, who already was wounded to begin with, fell to his knees with Lucci's finger still in his chest.

"Have you learned your lesson yet?" Lucci spat caustically.

The ropes dropped as Lucci retracted his soaking scarlet finger.

"Rope guy!" Luffy said lividly.

"Why…?" was all Paulie could say.

Lucci's bird landed on his shoulder as the most evil of looks descended upon Paulie. "Stop this pointless resistance," he threatened. "We've mastered techniques beyond the limits of normal human abilities."

I almost laughed. Luffy was a rubber man, I could control time, Chopper was a human-reindeer, Zoro was practically a monster with three swords, and Nami could kind of control the weather with her Clima Takt.

Paulie tried to stand up again, but Lucci grabbed onto his shoulder and said, "It doesn't matter if you can fight; you're going to be killed either way." He raised his other hand menacingly. "This is sad, but my friend…"

"Stop it!" Luffy yelled, kicking his stretchy leg and flinging it towards the enemy. Lucci caught it easily. Luffy looked stunned for a second, then jumped towards them yelling, "Gum-Gum…"

"Iron Body," Lucci said, letting go of his foot.

"Gatling!" he finished, punching Lucci rapidly. When he finished, jumping back, it had done absolutely no damage to his opponent.

"How annoying…" yawned Lucci, disappearing in an instant. When he materialized again, he was holding a finger to Luffy's throat. "Finger Pistol!"

But, thankfully, it didn't go through. Luffy was only thrown into the wall next to us.

"Luffy!" we all said frantically.

He coughed for a little while before sitting up.

Lucci said, "If you had a normal body, you would have died instantly."

Luffy reached over the room and grabbed Paulie, dragging him over to us.

"What did you do that for?" Lucci asked.

"You're gonna kill him, aren't you?" Luffy asked. "You guys were friends! You were shipwrights together!"

"That was before," he replied indifferently. "But that's no longer the case."

"Fine, then," Luffy said, becoming even more irate. "I promised him that we'd beat the crap out of those who're trying to kill Ice Pops together!"

"Why are you siding with Paulie?" Kaku asked.

"I have business with you people, too," he replied. "Hey, Robin! Why are you with jerks like them?! If you're gonna leave us, at least tell us the reason!"

"He's right!" Nami butt in. "They said they work for the Government. Why are you doing this?!"

"You're not listening, are you?" she asked, narrowing her eyes. "I said goodbye to Cook, Doctor, and Little Watchman. You didn't tell them?"

"We did!" Chopper said. "But we can't accept it!"

"Robin… Why?" I asked. "Just tell me why…"

"To make my wish come true," she said. "It would never happen if I'm with you. To make it happen, I don't care what sacrifices need to be made!"

"So you set us up as assassins without hesitation?" Zoro asked sharply. "That's your wish?!"

I could see in her eyes that she was lying. They were flickering with hesitation that didn't translate into her calm voice. But even still, I felt deeply hurt.

"Are you out of your mind, Nico Robin?" Iceberg asked. "Do you realize what you're about to do?!"

"You no longer have the right to say anything!" she spat back, waving her hand towards him. "Keep your mouth shut!" Multiple hands sprouted on the man to keep him restrained.

It didn't make sense. She could've just killed us all ready if she wanted to, so why hadn't she done it yet if she so despised us?

"I won't let anyone get in my way," she threatened.

"What happened to you, Robin?!" Chopper exclaimed, heartbroken. "Are you really our enemy now?"

"Sorry, but I need you guys to stop now," Lucci said, walking in front of her. "We have to find an important person now, so we're in a hurry."

I narrowed my eyes at him and murmured. "Tick-Tock."

Everyone else around me froze. I walked around him slowly, trying to calm my frustration.

"Robin," I said, grabbing her wrist.

She gasped at my appearance.

"Why did you leave us…?" I asked. "I know you're not telling us the truth!"

"It's none of your business-"

"Yes, it is!" I screamed. "Our family is falling apart! Usopp left, and I don't want to lose you too!"

She looked taken aback, but quickly tried to regain her senses. She jerked her hand out of my grasp and froze, which made me lose focus and accidently restart time.

All eyes were on me, friend and foe. Lucci turned around first, sensing me directly behind him. Within a split second, his foot was coming towards me to kick, but I ducked and moved out of the way.

"I've fallen for that too many times to be hit with that," I said, walking back towards Luffy and the rest of my friends with a broken heart.

"Kalifa, how much time is left?" he asked, completely ignoring me.

"Two minutes," she replied, looking at a pocket watch.

"I know this is sudden, but this building is going to burst into flames in two minutes," he said. "Fire is an effective tool for destroying evidence. So, if you don't want to burn to death, I suggest you leave immediately. Well, of course… that is, if you could."

Kaku, the one I didn't know, and Kalifa all stepped in front of Robin and Lucci.

Nami got out her Clima Takt while Zoro grabbed his swords.

"Looks like they intend to eliminate us," Zoro said, narrowing his eyes. "It also seems that Nico Robin wants to be on their side. Luffy, were you able to accept Robin's leaving the ship?"

"How could I?" he yelled, completely enraged.

"Well, you don't have to shout like that," Lucci said. "The rooms on the first floor are about to set fire. Well, if the culprits are pirates, things like that can happen."

"You bastards!" Paulie cursed.

"Well, you guys are criminals. No harm done," said the one I didn't know.

The clock on the wall read one minute left.

Robin put up her hood.

"I'll go on ahead and leave now," she said.

"Yeah, you completed your job. Thanks," Lucci replied.

"Wait, Robin!" shouted Luffy. "I won't allow it!"

"Goodbye," she said, walking towards the window.

"Don't let her go…!" Iceberg struggled to say.

Luffy started running for the people blocking our way, roaring for her to stop.

My heart started racing. This was my chance.

I ran behind him and said, "Luffy-nii! I'm going after her!"

"Maggie, wai-" he tried to say before I stopped time and jumped out the window after Robin.

Somehow, I landed on my feet, started time again, and looked around. She already jumped over the hedge. I got up quickly to follow her. As I leapt over the bush, I flattened myself against the hedge and listened for the sound of her high heels running away. My heart raced in my chest. If we all played our cards right, Robin might be able to come back to our family! And since Luffy and the others were really strong, I had no doubt they would lose.

The wind progressively became stronger and stronger as I followed her. The storm surge would surely happen soon. I tailed her in secret all the way to the train station. But as she arrived, so did the CP9 agents Luffy and the others were supposed to beat. There were many other marines about. I had to stay in the shadows to see what was going on.

I crouched down next to a corner and observed the marines as they prepared to depart for Enies Lobby.

_But what about Luffy…? _I thought._ They were supposed to take care of these guys!_

I shook my head, trying not to think about them. My target was Robin, so I began to think about how to get her back without anyone noticing.

Of course, I could always just grab her when I stopped time, but that would cause a great commotion and I was never very good under pressure. So I dismissed that plan before it had a chance to sail.

Then, quite suddenly, a strong hand grabbed my shoulder pulled me back from behind and covered my mouth so I couldn't scream. I frantically started struggling out of the person's grip, but he whispered in my ear, "It's me, Maggie-chan."

He uncovered my mouth and I whirled around, exclaiming. "Sanji-nii?!"

"Shh," he said, pulling me further into the shadows. "Those marines might hear us."

I hugged him tightly, heart filling with relief. "They have Robin!" I whispered.

"And Usopp," he supplied.

"What…?" I asked.

"And the Franky guy, too," he continued. "Man, it seems like he's trying to cause us trouble…"

"Do you have a plan to rescue Robin?" I asked.

"I was trying to think of one when I saw you," he said. "I swear on my life, Maggie-chan, I will keep you safe and get Robin-chan back!"

"Shh!" I urged. "They'll hear _you_!"

He quickly looked over the corner and said, "The last of 'em are boarding the train, we're fine if we stay here for now."

"Ok," I said just as the boarding bell started ringing incessantly.

"Due to the departure time has been moved up and the train will be leaving soon," said a woman's voice over the annoying bell.

"It's already leaving?!" he exclaimed, running out into the open.

"Sanji-nii!" I hissed. "What are you doing?!"

"They're all on the train!" he said. "Come on out."

I poked my head around the corner and saw no one else there. Hesitantly, I paced out into the open station and next to Sanji.

"What are Luffy and the others doing right now?" Sanji asked.

"Well, they were supposed to beat up some of the guys that got on the train…" I said, worried. "But I guess that didn't happen, so…" I looked back at the station entrance. "It doesn't look like anyone's coming."

"They're fine," he said, smiling. "This is Luffy we're talking about." He grabbed my hand and said, "Come on. We're getting on that train."

"Wait, what-"

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong>

**Ok, to be completely honest… I haven't really had the motivation to write any of my stories so my updates were suuppperrr irregular. I'd get on a roll with one and then completely lose hope, and keep repeating that over and over until POOF! I finished this chapter. I found my motivation in the most recent episode of One Piece (because Law is, like, my one and only love in life currently and the only thing keeping me going is the Sabaody Arc when Maggie gets to meet him.) I have a very fun surprise in store for the time skip as well~. So, now that I've found my motivation to write again, hopefully I'll update more on the weekends now that school has started for me.**

**Thanks for dealing with my horrible update schedule!**

**~Momo**

**P.S. Oh, yeah! I totally forgot to tell you. I draw Maggie and other characters from my fanfictions a lot, so if you're curious about what my characters look like, you can see them on my art account on Instagram. Just look up my real name, Mona Caroline K and it should come up.**

(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)


	39. Sogeking!

Sanji and I fought our way through the first car of the sea train and moved onto the next without breaking a sweat. As he opened up the door and walked in, everyone's heads turned towards us. I nervously walked behind him, almost tripping over my feet twice as no one said anything. Sanji just strut right to the door until someone pointed out we weren't supposed to be on the train, who Sanji promptly kicked in the jaw.

"G-get them!" someone else yelled.

"So that's how it's gonna be…?" he asked, a bit annoyed. "Stand back," he said. "I got these guys."

I nodded and let him take care of the government people who really weren't all that strong. And in a couple of seconds, he was lighting a cigarette and walking towards the door once more.

"And I thought it was a good plan," he said. "Operation Play Innocent."

As he opened the door and kicked the two guards completely out of the train car, I noticed it was a storage compartment.

"Sanji? Maggie?" said someone very familiar. "What're you two doing here?"

"I wanna ask you the same question," Sanji said, looking down at Usopp. But then he spotted a better prize, transponder snails. Sanji was excited he could finally contact Nami.

There was another man tied up with Usopp. He had a metal nose and a funky, blue haircut.

I looked away from Usopp, trying not to feel any emotions.

"So are you guys friends?" the blue hair guy asked.

"_Former_ friends," Usopp and Sanji said together.

"Well, I don't think so," I whispered.

"Wait, who the hell are you?" Sanji asked.

"I'm Franky, demolition worker and face of the Water Seven underworld," he said.

"YOU!" I said, whirling around and pointing at him. "You're the guy that kidnapped me and stole our money!"

Sanji kicked him in the face and cursed at him for a while before I told him to calm down.

"Things sorta happened after that!" Usopp said, crawling to shield Franky.

"You son of a bitch!" Franky yelled. "Just you wait till I get untied!"

"Stop," Usopp said to his new friend. "Oh yeah! He saved the _Merry_… The _Merry_… Oh yeah…" he trailed off somberly.

I hung my head low in sadness. I hadn't thought about the _Merry_ for a while.

"This is no time to start moping!" Franky said. "Hey, you, please untie me!"

"You should stay captured for the rest of your life!" Sanji spat back at him.

"You bastard! How dare you talk like that when I asked you so nicely?!"

They were about to start fighting when I said, "Be quiet or someone might hear us from another car!"

"If you'd just untie me-" Franky tried to reason.

"SHUT UP!" Usopp yelled at the top of his lungs.

"Now you've done it!" I whispered angrily.

* * *

><p>Sanji untied Franky and Usopp, and they went up to the roof. I, however, was told to scout the area and figure out if the marines knew we were there.<p>

When I got back onto the roof of the train, Sanji, Usopp and Franky were arguing over the transponder snail that Sanji broke.

"Ok," I said. "They know we're here, but they think it's just him and the weird guy that escaped and went on a rampage. And Robin is in the last car, but all the other people from the shipyard are in the second to guard her."

"Weird guy?!" Franky yelled at me.

"None of that matters right now," Sanji said, standing up. "Captain said to give them hell."

"All of them?" I asked. He nodded. "So we can save her right now?!"

"Yep!" he said.

"Yay!" I said, starting to jump excitedly, but I almost flew off the ship.

Franky burst into tears. "Nico Robin is said to be a horrible, evil woman, but the truth is she's got touching affection towards her friends!" he wailed, slapping the floor like a child. "It's so touching!"

"Robin-chan is here, on this train," Sanji said. "I'll rescue her without fail!"

Franky popped up like nothing just happened and said, "All right! I'll give you a hand, mister eyebrows!"

"Um… Usopp-nii…?" I asked. "Or should I call you that? Are you coming?"

He stood up, refusing to look at me and said, "No. I'm not coming. It doesn't have anything to do with me anymore. I don't wanna be part of it if the World Government's becoming your enemy. How could I join you guys after everything I did? I'm sorry, but I'm no longer honor-bound to go rescue Robin. I left the Straw Hats!" He said his last goodbyes as he started walking away.

Franky called after him, but Sanji said to leave him be.

I sighed and clenched my fists, trying very hard not to cry.

Just then, one of the marines on the ship came up onto the roof. His eyes nearly popped out of his head when he saw us.

"I found them!" he yelled.

"Metallic Star!" someone yelled.

A strange object hit the man in the face, and he flew off the ship and into the sea.

I looked over to my right and saw a new person with a strange mask and cape standing there.

"He told me everything," the man said. "I heard that you guys want to rescue a mademoiselle. That alone is reason enough for me to lend a hand. I will fight alongside you! My name is… Sogeking!"

He then burst into song all about his life.

I gasped in awe after his tune. "Who knew Usopp-nii knew such a person?!" I said. "Where did Usopp-nii go?"

"He had to go ahead of me, little lady, but fear not!" he said, striking a pose. "Sogeking will save the day!"

I looked back and Sanji and smiled, "He looks a lot more competent than Usopp!"

Sanji looked to Franky and said, "Just go along with it."

"Hey, come over here," Franky yelled over to him.

We all sat down in a circle and started planning our attack.

"Since we've never met before, what're your names?" Sogeking asked.

"Hi, Sogeking-sama, I'm Magnolia. That's Sanji, and that weird guy is Franky."

"It's nice to meet you all!" he said. "Do you have any questions for me?"

"Where's the island of snipers?" I asked excitedly. "Is it in the Grand Line?"

"Why, it's in your heart, Magnolia!" he said thematically.

Sanji and Franky were completely ignoring us as I asked him questions.

"If we carelessly jump the gun in this kind of environment with so many enemies, it'll be a big problem," Sanji said. "It'll be best if we avoid any unnecessary fights and crush the main forces in turns."

Sanji began to tell us his plan, which was pretty smart, and thankfully didn't involve too much of me.

"Ready?" he asked everyone.

We all nodded.

"Let's go."

* * *

><p>We dropped into the caboose and Sanji opened the door. A bunch of marines were searching about the cabin.<p>

"Good evening!" we all said cheerily.

Sogeking shut the door instantly and I extended the time-stop to everyone. Sogeking began boarding up the door with hammer and nails, but Franky kept criticizing his technique.

"Ok, guys!" I said. "Let's get on the roof!"

Sanji helped me climb back onto the roof and we all headed to the fifth train car to decouple the cars.

"How long should we wait?" I asked, starting time again.

"A minute or two should be fine," Sanji said.

And as we heard most of the marines running to the end of the cars, Sanji decoupled the two cars.

"Well, that takes care of most of the enemies…" he said. "The ones left are the ones I'm worried about."

"Wait, aren't Luffy-nii and the others coming on the same tracks?" I asked. "What about the cars?"

"I don't know," he said nonchalantly. "They'll probably handle it."

"Ok," I shrugged.

Sanji jumped down and opened the doors just as someone flew out. "Let's take out the next five cars, guys!"

And by guys, he really meant just the guys. Sanji thought it was too dangerous for me to fight in the trains so he sent me ahead to get Robin.

I slipped past the second car, walking as softly as I could possibly muster in case one of the CP9 agents had super hearing. As I got to the last car, the one where Robin was, I slid down the side of the car, desperately praying not slip and, surprisingly enough, it was her window.

I re-gripped the car so that I could knock on the window.

"Robin!" I whispered.

She looked over at me and gasped. "Little Watchman?!" she said.

I smiled at her and she opened the window quickly to let me in.

"What are you doing here?!" she whispered.

"Rescuing you!" I said.

"Shh!" she urged.

Just as I got in, Sogeking entered through the window as well.

"Long-nose, you too?" she asked.

"O-of course, ma'am," he said.

"You can't be here!" she said.

And then, someone opened up the door.

"Sogeking, take care of him!" I said.

He shot something that exploded into his face and the official went down.

She stood up and ripped off the green cloak, looking angry. As she started walking towards the door to the second compartment, Sogeking and I tried to stop her.

As she stepped into the second cart, Sogeking and I froze in fear. All of the CP9 officials were staring at us and even Sanji, too.

"Robin-chan!" he said. "I'll take care of these guys right away, and then we can go, alright?"

She put her hands up to make and X and sprouted a couple hands that threw me and Sogeking towards Sanji.

"Woah!" I said, regaining my balance.

"Even if I explain it, you guys don't listen," she said sternly.

"Robin…?" I asked.

Lucci started laughing, but Sogeking spun around and told Franky to detach the third car.

"Why?" Franky asked, confused.

"We're going to run!" he said.

"Run?" I asked.

"Hurry, one moment will decide the game!" he said.

"Don't let Franky get away," Kaku ordered.

Just as he said that, Sogeking threw a smoke bomb into the floor and I ran for the third car. Once everyone was on, Franky decoupled the cars.

I sighed in relief.

"Don't let your guard down just yet," Sanji said.

And all of a sudden, sharp wire attached to our car and pulled it along with the train. Then, the car jerked and we were being pulled even closer towards the train.

I backed up all the way to the car's rear when they pulled it so close, it was almost if we hadn't decoupled it.

"Don't kill any Straw Hats," Lucci ordered his comrades. "That was the condition."

"Sogeking, protect Maggie-chan and Robin-chan at all costs, ok?!" Sanji said.

"Of course!" he replied.

Sanji started attacking them hopelessly and I stared at Robin, wondering what she would do. Her hands suddenly bound me up so that I couldn't move.

"Clutch!" she said.

"Rob-" I said before I blacked out.

* * *

><p>I woke up surrounded by the Franky Family and our crew. They were discussing the plan to infiltrate the marine base, Enies Lobby. I tried to listen and concentrate, but I could help but think about my dad. What if he was there? What if I saw him?<p>

"We're only 60, but the enemy's forces are probably above 3,000!" one of the Franky Family members said.

I jerked my head up.

I was pretty much useless in combat, I knew that. Even though my Devil Fruit was pretty cool, it did nothing but slow me down in a pinch. So what if I could stop time? It was all for naught if I couldn't learn to use it properly.

"We'd like you guys to only go after CP9 to avoid unnecessary battles," the same member said.

"Alright," Luffy said, determined to get Robin back.

"We're at the front of the island!" Kokoro said over the loud speaker. "There's no time to lose!"

The Franky Family members ran to the front of the car. "We'll go first, as planned!" the same member said enthusiastically.

_I don't think I've mentally prepared myself for this… _I thought to myself.

"Wait…" Chopper said. "Where's Luffy?"

"He was literally right here a second ago…" Nami said.

"CRAP!" the whole car yelled.

"Why the hell does he do this?!" Paulie asked.

"We should've known…" Zoro said.

* * *

><p>As the Franky Family and their king bulls infiltrated the gate, the rest of us waited in the train until it was time to get going.<p>

"W-what exactly are we supposed to do?" I asked nervously.

"Get Robin back," Nami said.

"Well, yes, I know that," I said. "But, like, what if we encounter the enemy?"

"_If_?" Zoro asked. "You will."

I gulped. "What do we do then?" I asked.

"You fight," Zoro said fiercely. "And win."

"I mean, I can't… kill… anyone… We're not killing people, are we?" I asked.

Everyone was silent.

"I hope it doesn't come to that, Maggie-chan," Sanji said.

My eyes widened.

_I might have to… kill someone?_ I thought. _Not just someone, multiple people!_

"Ok, but everyone," Nami said. "Don't die, alright?"

"Duh," they all said. "Not planning on it.

"Yeah…" I said, a bit shocked.

_Well, he said it might not come to that, so I don't have to if I don't want to, right? _I thought. _Yeah, that's surely it._

I dug into my bag and got out my dagger.

"I'm ready," I said, clenching my fists.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	40. First Kill

**Author's Note:**

**I did some research a while back when I first started this story about who Maggie's father would be. I didn't want to make up some random character, I actually wanted him to be a part of the series. So I chose an extremely minor character you probably haven't even heard of until now. And that was for a reason: I have wiggle room for dialogue and backstory. You can go look on the wiki, I assure he's really there. You may have seen him in the series but I don't think they actually mentioned his name before.**

**Now for the revelation. Drumroll please?**

**Vice Admiral Onigumo!**

**See, I was right. You haven't heard of him! :D**

**Anyway, so this is kind of an emotional chapter for Maggie and the MOST EPIC, but I do go into some gross detail towards the end. You have been warned.**

**~Momo~**

* * *

><p>"It's time, guys!" Kokoro said. "They should've opened up those gates by now."<p>

"Charge ahead! Charge ahead!" Chimney sing-songed.

We commissioned Zoro to take care of the iron gates so that the train could actually crash into the base. Everyone looked quite ready as we headed straight for Enies Lobby. Chopper even turned into his more reindeer-like form.

"Wait, change of plans. The samurai-man says that everyone should hold on tight to the car," Kokoro said.

"Hold on tight?" I asked. "Why?"

So Sanji went on the roof of the train to ask and came back with the response, "They closed the main gate."

"We're gonna crash!" Sogeking said, terrified.

"What're we gonna do?!" Chopper asked, even more terrified.

"Dodge it, Kokoro-san!" Nami shrieked.

Zoro planned to use the iron gate as a ramp to get over the main gate, or at least that was the plan.

I held on tightly to the walls as everyone shrieked in the air. I was a bit scared, but I was trying to remain calm for the upcoming battle. We passed over the main gate and slammed right into the back of a giant near the second gate.

Zoro and Sanji not only survived the blast, but got right back up and started fighting the marines immediately. Sogeking, Chopper, and Nami weren't so lucky. They had a few bumps and bruises, but it took them a while to climb out of the now broken train.

I, however, was smart and jumped off while time was frozen so that I wouldn't be hurt.

Kokoro, Chimney and Gonbe all spilled out of the train smiling happily about how we forced them to work the train and how they were weak. And the marines ate it up!

I didn't notice at first, but Nami had been at work making a thunder cloud.

"Let's see how powerful the thunderbolt is!" she said, lighting up the electric charge on her Clima Takt and throwing it into the dark cloud. "Thunderbolt Tempo!"

The thunderbolt was so powerful, it took out most of the marines, some of our allies, and all of the glass in the vicinity.

Nami was very proud, but had to escape for her life. She hit Sogeking over the head with a very powerful thwack. Chopper and I were really confused as to why she was hitting Sogeking when the maker of the weapon was, in fact, Usopp.

Zoro and Sanji, who had been caught in the thunder, got up instantly. Zoro started yelling at her, but Sanji was swayed with her power. But after everyone calmed down, we had to get our heads back in the game.

"Well, this island is small so Luffy must be-" Nami said to be interrupted with a large boom off in the distance. "Found him!"

"Let's go after him, shall we?" Zoro smirked, cracking his neck.

Towards the explosion we went, preparing for battle.

* * *

><p>They started talking about how it was good that Luffy was reckless since the main forces would be absorbed with stopping him. We changed courses and headed straight for the courthouse.<p>

Bu all of a sudden, Zoro stopped. The rest of us skidded to a halt behind him.

"What's wrong?" Nami asked.

"We have guests," he said.

My heart started racing.

A team of dogs and their masters came up, the head officer towards the front. "You cannot step over this line!" he said. "We refuse to let you pass!"

I looked around to my family and said, "Shall I?"

"Sure, go right ahead," Sanji said.

I smiled and said, "Tick-Tock Extend: Sanji, Chopper, Zoro, Nami, and Sogeking!"

Time stopped as we moved right around the obstacles stopping our path. I started time again when we were safely clear. I started breathing a bit heavily, but it wasn't anything too bad. I got many thanks from my family, which only made me blush.

"Grab on!" someone yelled behind us.

There was a huge crash as we all stopped. I whirled around and saw ropes coming for us from the king bull Paulie was riding. I grabbed onto one of the ropes as he promptly pulled us onto the ride.

Luckily there were seats on the king bull. I sat down next to Nami and Chopper as Paulie steered. We were on the one with the other Galley-La foremen and the second king bull behind us was taken over by the Franky Family.

Paulie asked Sanji to take the reins while he and the other foremen dealt with the soldiers trying to raid our bull.

"When you see those guys," Paulie said, "tell them, 'You're fired'."

Zoro smirked and said, "Sure will."

I laughed and said, "Be careful!"

"They're strong," Chopper reminded me. "Don't worry!"

I smiled at him and said, "Yeah, I know."

But that's when we noticed that Sogeking was missing.

Sanji had to remind us that Sogeking was an invincible hero and that calmed Chopper down for the moment, but it wouldn't make me stop worrying.

We continued on towards the courthouse, towards Robin. We were making pretty good time, too. That is, until someone shot a large mortar at our king bull.

Chopper looked horrified as he stared at the poor animal coughing up blood and howling in fierce pain. "I have to treat him right away!" he said frantically.

The Franky Family started yelling at us to jump over onto their bull, but Sodom (the king bull) turned around and started talking to Chopper. Chopper was in tears as he translated for the kind beast, "He said go!"

The great bull lifted its head into the air after we'd all jumped onto the other bull, Gomorrah, and gave one last howl before collapsing to the ground.

Chopper and I were crying at the loss of a dear friend.

While that was happening, Nami got a call on her mini transponder snail. Kokoro supplied her some valuable information: there were two levers on the top of the two towers of the courthouse to lower a bridge to get to the Tower of Law, and Chimney said she saw Luffy on top of the courthouse going on a rampage.

Our destination was set in stone and we kept going forwards.

But that's when Gomorrah was hit with a giant ball on a chain and knocked out.

Thousands of soldiers and snipers with giant mortars started boxing us in. Everywhere where you looked, there was a man in uniform.

"We're goners!" Chopper yelled, feeling defeated.

"There's only one way," said Zoro.

"Please don't say it…" I hoped.

"We gotta make a dash for the courthouse!" Sanji said.

"All right, guys! Let's go!" said one of the Franky Family members.

"Wait, don't get off!" yelled Chopper.

The beast underneath us was stirring and lifting his head. Gomorrah howled out furiously and began moving again. I sighed in relief and thanked him profusely for being so strong and brave.

"Go, Gomorrah!" the Franky Family cheered.

He finally fell at the stairs of the courthouse.

"We're here, Gomorrah!" Chopper said, proudly crying.

We all raced off of the bull and stared in awe at the huge doors of the courthouse.

"Can you see Luffy?" Nami asked.

"No," replied Sanji. "Well, we can't climb up. It's too high."

"Yeah, we're not made of rubber," Zoro chuckled.

"Well, we gotta catch up to them quickly!" Chopper said.

"Yeah, Robin's waiting!" I pointed out.

Suddenly, the iron ball that almost took down Gomorrah came straight for all of us. Zoro was about to slice it, but the frog Yokozuna jumped in the way and stopped it just in time. It retracted and the user ran around the corner.

"Let's keep moving," Zoro advised. "It's no use to fight an enemy who runs."

He ran up to the door and cut a huge chunk out of it for us all to run through.

"He cut through thick stone!" one of the Franky Family members marveled.

They began to split into two groups, one for each tower to lower the drawbridge while we just moved forward.

Sanji ran to the front and bade Nami and me to follow only him. Nami looked at me and said, "Don't listen to him." He started running up the stairs, chasing after Robin. Zoro almost got lost like three times and we'd only moved a couple hundred feet into the courthouse.

I gripped my dagger with a shaky hand as we ran through the court. Even though everyone in front of me took care of all the enemies, I was still really worried that I might have to kill someone.

Suddenly, while I wasn't paying attention, Nami, Chopper, and I all got swallowed up in someone's attack and was sent spiraling up towards the roof. It really was all that bad. We did end up were we needed to be, on the roof.

"Ow…" Chopper said.

"You ok?" Nami asked us. We both nodded.

Zoro climbed out of the whole we just flew through saying, "I shoulda done this from the start."

"So it was you!" Nami yelled.

Sanji burst through the floor of the roof as well. And Sogeking joined us soon after.

The gang was all back together!

"Come on, Robin!" said an angry voice we all know and love. "You can go ahead and say you wanna die or whatever, but say that stuff with us!"

_Robin?_ I thought, looking in Luffy's direction.

All of CP9 was lined up on the balcony of the Tower of Law and Luffy was standing on one of the little pillars on the courthouse yelling up at Robin, who was behind the CP9 members.

"Yeah, Robin-chan!" Sanji yelled.

"Come back, Robin!" Chopper screamed.

I was so happy to see her, I almost cried. "Robin!" I shrieked. "We're gonna save you!"

We all started walking towards Luffy, each picking a pillar to stand on. Our lineup was Nami and Zoro on one pillar, Luffy, me, and Sogeking on the next, and Sanji and Chopper on the last.

"Just leave the rest to us!" Luffy yelled.

"The Franky Family's bringing down the bridge, so we can go over there once it's lowered," Zoro informed our captain.

The chief of the CP9 squad started laughing. "You stupid pirates! Putting on a brave front doesn't change a thing! You're up against the power of the assassin group, CP9, not to mention the Gates of Justice can't be opened by human strength. And above all things, right now I have the authority to exercise Buster Call."

"Don't!" Robin pleaded. "Not that!"

"What was that?" he taunted her. "You don't want me to press this button?"

"You don't understand what happens if you press it…" she said grimly.

"I do," he replied. "It'll eliminate the possibility of the pirates escaping from this island, all with this little button. It's that simple."

"No it's not!" she yelled.

"Oh?" he asked. "So you don't want me to press it? Right now?"

Even from far away, I knew that his finger was getting closer and closer to the button.

"Stop it!" she shrieked. "If you exercise a Buster Call, right here, right now, then together with Enies Lobby you, too, will disappear."

The chief of CP9 laughed. "Don't be ridiculous! There's no way our own people would attack us!"

"Twenty years ago I lost everything to Buster Call," she began, "and now it's targeted on the friends I was finally able to find. Friends, I can be myself with! The more I get close, the more my fate tries to tear us apart! No matter where I go… I can't shake off this one enemy because it's the world! I've already dragged you guys into my troubles twice. Even though you're all kind, if this continues forever, eventually you'll regret letting me join! You'll betray me and abandon me! That's what I'm most afraid of! That's why I didn't want you to come rescue me! Since I'm going to die anyway, I want to die right here, right now!"

"Robin…" we all said, heartbroken. She was choking up by the end; I could hear it in her voice.

And after she spilled her heart out to us, the chief had the nerve to laugh at Robin. "Look at this symbol, you damn pirates!" he yelled, pointing up to the triangular World Government flag on top of the Tower of Law. "That flag symbolizes the 170 countries united under it! Do you realize how powerless you guys are against the whole world?! Do you realize how huge of an organization this woman is captured by?!"

"I know," Luffy said, looking up at the flag intently. "Sogeking."

"Hm?" he asked.

"Shoot through that flag," he ordered.

"Roger," Sogeking said, readying his long slingshot. "This is my new weapon, a huge slingshot named Kabuto! Have a good look at its power! Special Attack: Firebird Star!"

He drew the strings back and let the attack spring towards the flag in a ball of furious flames, ready to engulf it.

"Mission accomplished," Sogeking said, setting his hand on his hip.

The chief started yelling at us about how we were so weak compared to the power of the Government.

"BRING IT ON!" Luffy yelled. "Robin! We still haven't heard you say it! Say you want to live!"

"I want to live!" she wept. "Take me to the sea with you!"

Luffy smirked with pleasure. "Let's go!"

My grip steadied on my dagger finally. I had made up my mind. We were going to rescue Robin, whether I had to kill anyone or not.

* * *

><p>The drawbridge underneath us began lowering just in time, but before we could jump on it, the marines inside started attacking it with mortars to wipe it out.<p>

Kokoro called in Nami's mini transponder snail. "I heard everything! What're you guys waiting for? Jump into the falls!"

"Jump?" I asked, shocked. "But it's a bottomless pit with water at the bottom!"

But then, I heard it. The sea train's horn.

Luffy's grin took up about half his face. His arms stretched out around all of us and pulled us in close to him. I was squished up next to him and Sogeking.

"Here we go!" he yelled, jumping into the falls and taking all of us with him.

I screamed extra loud as we plunged down into the falls, not knowing if the train would get there in time.

We crashed into the train which subsequently crashed into the Tower of Law's gate.

"Come guys! Get up!" Luffy urged. "That was nothing!"

We all struggled slowly out of the gate's rubble.

"You're rubber," Zoro said, standing up. "Don't lump us with you."

I was helped up by the aid of Sanji who helped Nami right afterwards.

"The stairs are over there!" Luffy yelled. "Let's hurry up and catch up to Robin!"

"Wait!" said someone from above. "Looks like we got invaded…" It was a man, a very round man with a zipper for a mouth and green hair. "If you go to the room you saw before, Nico Robin won't be there. She left with Lucci and went to the Gates of Justice."

"Is that right?" Nami asked. "Well, thanks for the valuable information."

"Dang it!" he yelled. "I spilled the beans… Oh well, I won't tell you how to get there and we, CP9, won't let you get there either! We have orders to annihilate you guys!" He reached into his pocket and pulled out a key. "And one more thing! This is the key to unlock Nico Robin's sea prism stone handcuffs! Even if you guys rescue her by some chance, the handcuffs are as hard as diamonds and won't come off."

"Well then give it to us!" Luffy yelled, stretching his hand to grab the key.

The round CP9 member jumped off in the blink of an eye and said, "I didn't say this was the right key. It might be for different handcuffs~ There are five different CP9 members and we all have one key, but only one is the right one."

"How stupid…" Sanji said. "They're just buying time."

"That's right!" he said, gliding into the air.

"Catching up with Robin should be our priority," Nami said. "Let's get Robin back, and then worry about the key."

"I-if you do that!" the round man said. "I'll through this key into the sea! See, we're giving you a chance here. See ya!"

He flew off into the Tower.

Luffy tried to run after him, but Sogeking and Zoro held him back. "Wait!" Zoro said. "We need to decide what each of us is going to do!"

"If Lucci's that pigeon guy, we should send Luffy on ahead," Sanji said.

"Luffy-nii!" I said enthusiastically. "Beat up the pigeon guy, ok?"

He stopped struggling against Zoro and Sogeking to look back at me. Luffy grinned hugely. "Of course!" he yelled, running off into the Tower.

"There are seven of us, excluding Luffy here and there are only five CP9 members," Sanji began. "We'll get the five keys for Robin-chan's handcuffs from them and go after Luffy."

We all nodded.

"But if Robin goes through the gates, it'll all be over!" Sogeking said.

"And if we lose, we lose time," Zoro said. "Everyone, take them down even if it costs you your life!"

"Yeah!" we all said.

* * *

><p>Adrenaline pumped through my veins as the screams of dying men encompassed my ears. The world, it seemed, was in a frenzy for death. No one had ever willingly done what we were doing, declaring war on the World Government and all. The marines rushed towards us down the hall and we met them ready for bloodshed.<p>

I'd never killed anyone before. Sure, I'd seen people killed before by my father, but I'd never done it. And sure, I knew how to kill someone. It was practically common knowledge how to break a few bones or how to slit someone's throat. But the thought of killing someone, like, actually killing someone with my own hands… Even the thought terrified me. Despite this, I charged for the marines with my family at my side.

When I joined the crew, I never thought I'd be called to fight like this. I was only the watchman for heaven's sake! Sure, I did fight alongside everyone in the Arlong and Crocodile battles, but I never really did any significant in them. And with people as strong as Zoro and Sanji in our crew, I really never thought that I, a twelve year-old girl, would be called to beat as many people as I could in order to save the woman I thought of as my own mother.

My feet wobbled beneath me as I charged towards the men in uniform. I used to be a part of them. I knew firsthand that all these men had a family and friends, possibly a wife and children at home. How could I take that away from them? But the simple answer was that I couldn't.

But, I had too.

In order to save Robin, we had to kill some of these innocent people. But was it really worth it? To finally see blood on my hands for the sake of someone I loved dearly? Everyone else seemed to think so, but that was because they'd probably killed before.

There was so much to consider in such a short amount of time.

Of course, I could just knock everyone I fought unconscious. But what if because I didn't kill someone, one of my friends died?

Was I being selfish for wanting to let them live? It was impossible to make up my mind in a split second.

We were nearing the enemies, only footsteps away. I'd have to make my decision right then. Obey to stay innocent? Such a touch choice for a child to make hastily.

A man was coming for me with a sword, but one of the men next to him yelled for all the men not to attack me.

"She's Vice Admiral Onigumo's daughter!" he yelled. "The little girl stays alive!"

I stopped dead as soon as the sound of gunfire and metal clashing rang in my ears like a church bell.

"T-Tick-Tock…" I said shakily, stopping time.

_They know who I am…_ I thought.

I looked at the man who tried to attack me in the eyes.

"I'm sorry…" I whispered, clutching the dagger in my hands.

I lifted it with a shaky grip and placed it to the man's throat with my extended arms. I pierced it into his skin and watched as his crimson blood ran down the symmetrical blade and onto the hilt. I felt it run through my guilty fingers as I slid the dagger out.

My eyes would not stop crying as I looked at the fatal wound I had inflicted upon this innocent soul. He didn't do anything wrong except be at the wrong place at the wrong time.

"Un-Tock," I barely chocked out, starting time again.

I looked away, but I could still hear the horrible sounds of the man gargle his blood in front of me and the thud of him dropping to the ground, pale and motionless. He was one of the first to fall.

I finally brought myself to look at the corpse and gasped in horror, holding my face. "What have I done?" I yelped, sliding to my knees.

I couldn't stop staring at the man in fear.

"I'm not a killer…" I lied to myself.

A different man that I didn't know started to grab my hand, helping me up forcefully. As I looked up, I noticed he was one of the last marines left standing. My friends had already fought through the other men.

"Ms. Feobus," he yelled over the chaos. "Your father is coming in a little while. Please let me help you get to safety! The Buster Call is-"

"No…" I whispered. "NO!"

I didn't even realize what had happened by the time this man lay next to the other one pale and motionless. My dagger was sticking out of his chest. I clutched my face in horror, but my fingers had the blood of other men on them, so it only made me look like more of a murderer.

I didn't realize it at the time, but I actually was so overwhelmed that I stopped everything around me.

And I screamed. And I screamed and screamed and screamed and screamed till there was no more breath in my lungs. Tears rushed down my face like rivers as I looked at what I'd just done.

_I killed two people…_ I thought, disgusted with myself.

"Pull yourself together!" I yelled at myself suddenly, refusing to let this slow me down. "I have to save Robin!"

I stood up and wiped away my tears, setting my mind on other things.

_I gotta get the keys…_ I thought. _Yeah, that's how I'll help. I steal all the keys!_

I ran around the base to where my friends were fighting and stole the keys from the CP9 members while stopping time so that they wouldn't know. And I just ran around until I found Franky running up the stairs shouting Robin's name.

I secretly followed him, hoping he'd know where she was going, but all of a sudden the stairs in front of him exploded and he was sent flying into the sea.

"Franky-san!" I said, watching him fall.

I took a deep breath and carefully jumped up the stair's ruins to reveal a bridge. Robin was being dragged by the CP9 chief towards a marine ship ready to sail away.

I was about to run out to her when all of a sudden, someone started sniping all of the marines. I knew it just had to be Sogeking! Robin took the chance and started running towards me, but I still kept hidden.

Then, the marines started pointing their guns at her. When I heard the first shot, I ran out into the open yelling, "No, Robin!"

But someone saved her! _Franky!_ I thought, overflowing with happiness. I'd never been so relieved in my life.

"I have the keys!" I said, running out to meet him. "I have all the keys!"

Franky turned around and said, "Well good, 'cuz I didn't know what I was supposed to do without 'em!"

"Little Watchman!" Robin said, smiling at me.

"Robin!" I said, nearly crying. Her head was bleeding pretty badly and she looked a little worse for wear.

"All the keys?!" the chief of CP9, Spandam asked, befuddled.

I sat down behind her and took out the keys one by one. I tried to unlock her cuffs with each of them, and finally the fifth key worked. The cuffs dropped to the ground and Robin massaged her wrists.

Needless to say, Chief Spandam was not happy, but I was! I hugged Robin for the longest time, and she hugged me back.

"We saved you!" I said.

"I knew you guys would," she said, wiping away the tear in her eye.

"Does that mean you guys defeated everyone in CP9?!" Spandam asked.

Franky held up a mini transponder snail, totally ignoring him. "Hey, Long-Nose. We got the handcuffs off of Nico Robin."

"All right!" Sogeking said.

"Thank you, everyone!" she said into the snail.

"Of course!" Sogeking said. "You are, without a doubt, one of Luffy-kun's gang!"

"Yeah," she said. She suddenly turned around and put her hands in her ready position. "Seis Fleurs!" The six hands suddenly bloomed off of the chief. "Slap!" They continued to slap him for a while. "I'll do this to my heart's content."

"Come on, guys!" Franky said into the snail. "Hurry up and get over here! I'll get things ready for our escape!"

"Roger!" they said.

Everything was going our way for once!

But that's when the first cannonball of Buster Call struck.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	41. Father

**Author's Note:**

**Apologizing ahead at my awful fight-scene-writing-skills! I know it's really sucky and unrealistic, but I did the best I could (and am trying to improve!).**

**Oh, and Happy Belated Halloween!**

**~Momo~**

**P.S. You're going to hate me at the end of this chapter.**

* * *

><p>My stomach lurched as my head turned almost robotically towards the sound of cannon fire. The Tower of Law's roof was blown completely off! I gasped.<p>

"Long-nose!" Robin yelled.

Secondly, the bridge to get to the Tower of Law was knocked off.

Sanji called back on the mini transponder snail saying that they were all fine and heading our way. Robin smiled in relief. I however, felt like I was about to pass out.

"_Ms. Feobus! Your father is coming in a little while. Please let me help you get to safety! The Buster Call is-"_

Those were the words of one of the soldiers I killed. That meant my dad was here and on one of those battleships sent to annihilate Enies Lobby.

"Hey, can I count on you two for help?" Franky asked.

"Of course," replied Robin.

"Y-yeah…" I responded blankly.

The soldiers started firing at us, but I was too busy looking out into the distance for any sign of the ships.

To be honest, they didn't really need me to beat the soldiers either. I screamed when I saw the first signs of the battle ships beginning to peak out of the fog. Stumbling back and falling over, I pointed to the ships.

"T-they're here!" I shrieked, horrified at the thought of seeing my dad again.

They fired even more cannons at Enies Lobby, but I didn't pay attention to that. I fished out my telescope from my bag to get a closer look at the ships. And that's when I saw him, the man I'd been running away from for almost a year. I dropped my telescope in fear.

My father was on one of the ships.

Even though it was inevitable we'd meet up sometime on the sea, I would never as for it to be right here, right now. This was definitely the worst time to see him again.

"Are you two ok?!" Franky asked, snapping me back into reality.

I looked to him. "My dad is one of those ships," I said.

Robin was trembling on her knees a couple feet away from me. She'd been through Buster Call before; it must've brought back terrible memories of her childhood.

"Buster Call," she whispered. "It's happening again…"

Spandam started yelling at us about how Luffy was going to be beaten because Lucci apparently was so much stronger than him. I had faith in Luffy, but I didn't have faith in myself if I did, in fact, face my dad.

All of a sudden, while I stared at one of the battle ships being fired at by their comrades, Robin sprouted a hand on my shoulder, poked me, and pointed ahead. All of the soldiers on the bridge were taken care of and Franky and Robin were standing on the rescue ship.

Had I really blanked out that long?

I casted my thoughts aside and ran onto the ship with them. When I got on board, the rest of the crew, Kokoro (who turned out to be a mermaid?), Chimney, and Gonbe were spitting out water on the deck.

After Sanji finished crying, they all thanked her profusely for saving their lives. Nami and Chopper tackled Robin and gave her huge hugs.

I almost smiled.

But thoughts of my father continued to haunt me. Zoro, Sogeking, and Franky all got off the ship and walked back onto the bridge. I followed them, wanting to see where the battleships were.

To my complete horror, they were almost parallel with the bridge, attacking the main island relentlessly with cannon fire. The island across from us looked like a sea of flames.

"We'll wait for Luffy right here," Zoro was saying. "That's all we have to do."

"Understood," Sogeking said.

"Oi, Maggie," Zoro said, looking at me. "You ok? You're paler than usual."

I nodded, lying. "I'm good, Zoro-nii."

Nami started yelling from the ship, "We can leave whenever Luffy gets back, ok?"

"Yeah," he called back.

All of a sudden, my feet were in the water and I was being dragged down by someone. I tried to struggle, but my strength was gone. I looked around, terrified, at my attackers and saw their uniforms as I passed out.

* * *

><p>I woke up sputtering water out of my lungs on the deck of a new ship. Some marines were hovering over me.<p>

"Vice Admiral!" one of them said, standing up and saluting. "Your daughter is awake now."

"Great," said the horribly familiar voice of my father. He didn't sound very happy.

My eyes widened about ten times their normal size as I registered my surroundings.

"Welcome back, Magnolia," he said, looming over me. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"

I blinked a couple times, not truly believing I was here. I figured it was just another nightmare I had.

"Y-you're not really there!" I stuttered. "You're a dream!"

He laughed and accidently spit out his cigar inches away from my hair. "I assure you that this is no dream, Magnolia. It's really me."

"No…" I whispered, about to burst into tears. I tried to stop time and run off, but I couldn't for some reason.

"Don't even try to escape," he said, narrowing his eyes at me. He grabbed me by a chain and said, "Sea Prism Stone works wonders, don't you think?" He tossed me back to the ground.

I burst into tears. "Let me go!" I yelled. "Please, I'll do anything!"

"Let you go?" he asked, laughing. "You're not going anywhere, for a very long time, Magnolia."

"No, I'm going back to my friends!" I cried. "You can't stop me!"

"The sea can," he said. "We're not near the bridge like before."

"I don't even care I drown!" I spat. "Anywhere is better than with you!"

He held up his hand threateningly. "What did you just say?!" he yelled threateningly.

I winced and shut my eyes tightly, bracing for impact.

He chuckled. "I don't even know how you've survived this long," he insulted. "Someone as weak as you should just die along with the rest of the scum in the world."

"If I'm so weak, then why did you kidnap me?" I asked angrily.

"You are weak, yes, but your power isn't, Magnolia," he said. "If it was anyone else, I would've taken them. But you just happen to have the Devil Fruit that should've rightfully gone to me! Your damn mother-"

"Don't you dare say one thing about mom!" I screamed.

And then I found myself smashed against the wall.

"That's the last straw, Magnolia!" he yelled. "If you disrespect me one more time, I will kill you!"

As my vision became more and more clear, I stood up and wiped the blood dripping from the corner of my mouth. "I'm not the same as I was," I said, feeling the metallic taste of blood in my mouth. "I'm stronger than I was when I ran away."

"Oh, and you think I haven't powered up?" he asked. "I've eaten a Devil Fruit, myself."

I tried not to let my astonishment show on my face, but I was worried.

Very worried.

"It's not the strength of the Devil Fruit, it's the will of a person," he said. "I learned that from you. If you have great power and cowardly guts to match, you'll never get very far."

"I'm not a coward," I said, walking closer to him. With each step, I grew increasingly more enraged. "If anyone is, you're the coward for running away from mom and taking me with you. You're the coward for beating me when I wouldn't do what you asked. You're the coward for abandoning your wife to pursue a selfish purpose!"

I didn't control it, but Time Bullets suddenly erupted from my body, hitting innocent soldiers all around me. My father, however, dodged them.

The surviving soldiers readied their weapons at me, but my dad held up his hand. "Do not fire," he ordered, "under any circumstances."

He pulled out a key from his pocket and yanked my hands forward. He unlocked my handcuffs and threw them aside.

I looked up, confused.

"Pick up your dagger," he said, teaming with quiet ire.

"Why?" I asked, still confused.

"So it doesn't look like an execution," he said, smirking.

* * *

><p>He ordered his men to carry on firing indiscriminately at Enies Lobby while he dealt with 'family matters'. The soldiers scattered throughout the ship, trying to piss him off even further that I managed too.<p>

"Pick it up," he demanded.

I fished around for my dagger and pulled it out. "B-but why?" I asked.

"You're going to join your mother," he said, pulling out a sabre. "In hell!"

He started running towards me with crazed determination in his eyes. I looked around frantically, searching for one of the soldiers to help me. But no one was in sight.

I gripped my dagger steadily and blocked his first attack. I jumped back and yelled, "You don't have to do this! Just let me go!"

"That's not going to happen!" he yelled back, coming for me again.

"B-but I'm your daughter!" I cried. "You used to tuck me in at night and kiss my forehead when I was little! You loved me once!"

"Those days are over, Magnolia," he said, completely serious. "Or were you too naïve to think all those years I kept you captive was because I loved you?"

"I knew you didn't love me," I spat back. "You made that quite clear."

He started attacking again, but I kept dodging and reflecting.

"Why won't you just give up and die?!" he yelled, full of wrath. "What happened to the stupid girl who cried every time I forced her to use her powers for me?!"

"She's gone!" I yelled. "I'm not a baby, I've grown up."

"What do you know about being grown up?" he scoffed. "You're only twelve."

"I know a lot about the real world," I said, running to attack him. "It's big, it's dark, and it's ruthless! So if you think I'm not going to go down fighting, then think again!"

He blocked my attack and set me flying backwards, but I found my balance and landed on my feet skidding backwards.

I was sweating profusely and rasping for breath, partially because of adrenaline, and partially because of all the yelling. I stopped to take a quick breather.

Dad started laughing darkly. "So you're not going down the easy way, huh?" he said. "I guess I'll have to bring out my trump card…"

Suddenly, six spider-like appendages sprouted from behind him and began drawing sabers.

Eight swords vs. one tiny dagger.

I didn't like those odds.

* * *

><p>I gulped, knowing that I might die somewhere on this ship by my own father's hands.<p>

_I never got to say goodbye to Luffy and everyone else…! _I thought.

But that was my trigger.

I wasn't going to die here, no matter what. I had a family now, one that actually loved me. All that tied me to this man in front of me was blood. I had stronger ties with people elsewhere, and I fully intended to go back to them, no matter the cost.

_I mean… I already killed two people today…_ I thought. _So what if I have to add one more to the list?_

But a part of me was screaming to run away. He was still my father, even if he was a sucky one.

Well, then again, he was trying to kill me.

* * *

><p>I stopped time so I could figure out a strategy for fighting.<p>

_Well… _I thought._ If the swords are the problem, why don't I just take them away?_

But I threw that idea out. Even if he didn't have his swords, he still has six extra limbs to fight with, so it won't change much.

_Wait, but what if I took away those extra limbs?! _I thought, getting excited. _I doubt spiders regenerate that fast, anyway._

I started time again and wanted to test out my theory. But, he attacked much quicker than I expected. His speed practically doubled! I had a hard time catching up with him and eventually retreated to a safe distance away.

But, he kept coming, swinging feverishly with new attacks that were even harder to dodge. I barely dodged any of them in time and got a small cut on my cheek while trying to evade a blow.

It stung, but I was very glad I still had my head.

"Tick-Tock!" I said, stopping time.

I ran around him and tried to cut off one of his limbs. As it started falling to the floor, it froze in time. I smiled and jumped back.

As soon as the leg hit the floor, he was raging mad.

"What have you done?!" he screamed, charging forward with only seven limbs. "How dare you!"

He swung even more quickly than before and pushed me to the ground. I screamed, struggling to get up as I saw one of his swords heading straight for my neck.

"Tick-Tock!" I shrieked, stopping time.

I squirmed out of his grip and decided to cut another limb off for good measure. I checked the other leg and saw that it had already started growing back.

My eyes widened.

"Crap…" I said, realizing how quickly I needed to resolve this battle. "Un-Tock."

I backed away as he whirled around, ten times more enraged than before, if that was even possible.

"You little shit!" he screamed, heading straight for me yet again. "I should've just killed you from the start!"

"Where's the fun in that?" I scoffed, running for him again.

So far, I'd only been on the defensive. Now it was time for me to strike back!

"Time Bullets!" I yelled, shooting about twenty projectiles at him.

He dodged most of them, but a couple grazed his arm and stomach as he cursed violently at me.

My breath was beginning to evade me. I didn't have much left in me at this point, but I had to keep fighting. I had to win! Not to mention, the first leg I cut off was growing even faster. Within minutes, he'd be able to use it again.

_Let's get all of them in one go, Maggie._ I told myself.

"Tick-Tock!" I yelled for the final time.

I began working quickly, cutting off all the spider legs, even the ones previously cut. It took a bit longer than planned. I was a little worried what my fatigue would be like when I stopped.

"Un-Tock…" I said reluctantly.

Right away, my breath was instantly stolen from my lungs. I heaved over in surprise and gasped for air.

But that didn't stop my father. With only two swords remaining, he came straight for me for the last time.

I stood up, trying not to stumble and dodged his attacks weakly, trying with all my remaining strength not to fall. As I looked into his eyes, he was pleased. He had me cornered, weak, and practically defenseless. He was about to win.

"Any last words?" he asked, pushing me to the ground, holding up his sabre.

I looked up helplessly at him as a tear fell down the side of my face.

"I forgive you…" I whispered, shutting my eyes as another tear blinked out of my eye.

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	42. Goodbye

My words caught him off guard for about a split second, but he regained his composure and jabbed his swords towards my neck.

I was sure I was about to die, but whatever survival instinct I had begun to take action. My heart raced as the adrenaline began to take effect once more. My dagger blocked his sabre involuntarily.

"Stop struggling!" he yelled, trying to kill me once more.

But I deflected it again, gaining this newfound strength from nowhere. I pushed him off of me and stood up. My father looked more angry than confused and took a swipe at my feet. I jumped up, dodging the first attack and stabbed him in the air. He cursed loudly as I retracted my blade and dropped his sabre to the ground.

He had one sword left. The odds were about even now. It was anyone's game.

He clutched his arm in agony and looked wildly into my eyes.

"You can't kill me," he said. "You don't have the balls."

"Watch me," I said, stepping closer.

Right as I got within striking distance, he lunged his last sabre towards my stomach. I stumbled back a little, but narrowed my eyes.

"Goodbye," I said coldly as I drove my dagger into his chest. I wasn't aiming for his heart because I didn't want his death to be quick.

Yes, I had forgiven him for every horrible thing he did to me, but that didn't mean he didn't deserve punishment for his actions.

He fell to the ground and began bleeding profusely. But as I looked into his eyes, he was smirking evilly.

"What?" I asked.

"L-look down…" he slurred as he fell unconscious.

As I looked down, I dropped my dagger in surprise.

His last sabre was sticking out of my stomach. Blood was dripping on the ground. But not just any blood, my blood.

I almost screamed, but the sight of blood made my knees buckle. I fell onto my knees and stared at him.

"W-why didn't I feel it…?" I stuttered, completely unsure what to do.

I grasped the handle, but winced as I began to feel the pain.

"Ready?" I told myself. I lifted my shirt up a little and bit on it. "One… Two… Three!"

I pulled it out slowly and screamed through my shirt from the pain. I tossed it aside.

Blood began spilling out of my stomach. I clutched my front, trying to make it stop, but it wouldn't stop flowing!

"This is a report to all ships!" someone said over a loud speaker. "CP9 officer Rob Lucci was just beaten by Straw Hat Luffy!"

I coughed out my shirt and some blood came out with it. I smiled weakly with relief.

"I'm sorry, Luffy-nii," I said, vision beginning to blur. "I couldn't be strong like you…"

My head hit the deck of the ship.

"We're gonna go back together!" yelled his familiar voice. "Robin!"

My thoughts turned to all of my crew.

_Robin…_ I thought. _You were a great mom. Nami, you were the best sister I could've ever asked for!_

I was crying by that point.

_Sanji… Usopp… Chopper, Zoro, Luffy! I love you all! _I thought helplessly.

"Goodbye…!" I yelped.

"Vice Admiral!" a bunch of soldiers yelled in panic. "Straw Hat Luffy appears to be severely wounded and isn't moving!"

Suddenly, they all screamed because he wasn't moving either.

My eyes shot open.

_Luffy!_ I thought.

I looked down at my hand and remembered I had one last thing I could do.

"Time Mend!" I said, sealing up my wound for the time being.

I couldn't give up now, not with my captain injured. I had to help him!

"Where is he?!" I panted at the soldiers. "Where's Luffy-nii?!"

The soldiers looked hesitantly at me. "On the column…" one of them said.

"I have to get there," I said, standing up.

A couple of them held their weapons at me. "You did this to the Vice Admiral! I don't care if you're related, this is not acceptable!"

The others agreed and pointed their weapons at me.

"Ready, aim!" the first said. "Fire!"

I stopped all the bullets and looked over the railing. We were actually pretty close to the column they were speaking of.

"Luffy-nii!" I yelled happily.

My stomach was hurting like crazy, but I climbed up onto the railing and prepared to jump.

"Oi, Luffy!" yelled someone across from me.

"Usopp-nii…?!" I said, realizing it was him. "What's he doing here?"

"Get your butt over here!" he yelled at his captain. "We have to run or we won't survive!"

Luffy turned his head right as I jumped onto the column. I winced in pain as my wound reopened.

"Time Mend!" I said, sealing it again temporarily.

Luffy was rasping for air, as if they were about to give out any second.

"Gum-Gum shoot yourself over here or something!" Usopp yelled. "Come on! I'll even carry you! Come on, Luffy! We'll be killed!"

"I-I can't!" he said. "My body… isn't moving at all!"

"Luffy-nii!" I yelled, collapsing to my knees beside him.

"Maggie?!" he said, looking over to me, panting furiously. "What're… you doing… here?"

"I can help you!" I said, placing my hands on his chest.

He struggled to move his fingers.

"Time Mend," I said.

"Maggie…" he said, breathing a little bit easier.

"Time Mend!" I yelled. "Time Mend! Mend! Mend! Mend!"

My breath in return was taken away, but Luffy sat up slowly.

"Maggie!" he said. "What happened to you?!"

I smiled up at him and said, "You're ok… Thank God…"

"All unites prepare to strike the first column. Eliminate Straw Hat Luffy!" one of the marines yelled.

"Luffy! Maggie!" Usopp yelled. "Get outta there!"

"Maggie!" he said. "Grab on, we gotta go or they'll kill us!"

I laughed. "Now I can't move…"

He kneeled over me. "Maggie, I don't have enough strength to-"

"It's fine," I said, smiling. "Just go."

"No, I'm not leaving you!" he said.

All of a sudden, we all heard the same voice. "Look below!" it said.

"In five seconds, all units fire at the first column!" one of the marines said over a speaker.

"Jump into the sea!" Usopp yelled.

"Four seconds."

"Jump!" he screamed.

"Three seconds."

"Robin, drop them into the sea!" Usopp shrieked. "We're saved! She came to rescue us!"

Luffy turned around and saw Robin's hand coming for us.

"Two seconds!"

Hands sprouted under my body and began rolling me towards the edge along with Luffy.

"What the heck?!" Luffy yelled. "This is suicide!"

I didn't even care at that point.

"One second!"

We were thrown into the sea.

"Let's go back, everyone!" the voice in my head said.

"Fire!" was immediately followed by the explosions of cannon fire.

As I looked into the sea to see were we were landing, I burst into tears.

_Merry! _I thought. _Merry! You came for us!_

Our faithful ship was lying in wait for us in the sea!

"Get on the _Merry_!" Usopp yelled.

"I came to get you!" she said.

As we all plunged into the water, I passed out.

_Why is it always me that faints…?_ I thought as I slipped unconscious. It was partially because of exhaustion, partially because of the sea, and partially because of blood loss.

* * *

><p>"Maggie!" I heard Luffy's voice wake me up. "Maggie! Can you hear me?!"<p>

I couldn't even find the strength to open my eyes.

"Chopper!" he yelled. "Chopper! Maggie's hurt!"

I heard his hooves march over to me quickly.

"She's bleeding out!" he said.

"Chopper! You have to save her!" Luffy demanded.

"Luffy, what's wrong?" Nami asked. I heard her heels walk towards us as well.

I felt something cold on my chest.

"I can barely hear her heartbeat!" Chopper said. "Heavy Point!"

"Maggie, can you hear me?!" Luffy yelled in my ear while Chopper started pounding on my chest.

I rolled my head over to his voice and opened my eyes.

"Maggie!" he said, smiling.

But my eyes wouldn't listen to me. They closed again and the voices around me started becoming more and more distant.

"Maggie!" Luffy yelled from what seemed miles away. "Maggie!"

* * *

><p><em>I woke up in the white room again, sleeping on the couch with my head resting in my mother's lap. She stroked my hair and hummed a lullaby.<em>

"_Mom?" I asked, trying to sit up, but my stomach flipped over in pain and I laid back down. "Ow…" I winced._

"_Shh…" she said soothingly. "You're very hurt, you know."_

"_Yeah," I said, embarrassed. "I know it was really stupid to take on Dad."_

"_Yes, it was," she said, a bit angrily. "And you almost died."_

"_I'm sorry-"_

"_Shh," she said. "Don't interrupt, Maggie. I need you to become stronger, alright? I don't want you to scare me like that ever again, ok?"_

"_I will, Mom," I said, looking into her watery eyes. "I'll become stronger."_

_She smiled and wiped away the tears in her eyes. "That's my girl!"_

"_So… does that mean I'll live?" I asked._

_She laughed. "Of course you're alive! You think your friends would let you die like that?"_

_I giggled, but that was a bad idea. My stomach screamed out in pain. "I guess not…" I said, clutching my stomach._

"_You can heal yourself, you know," she urged._

"_I know," I said, looking up at her. "But I want this one to leave a scar." She looked confused. "As a reminder of what he did to us."_

"_Grudges aren't healthy," she frowned._

"_I've already forgiven him," I said. "It's just a reminder, Mom."_

_She sighed. "If that's what you want… You know, it'll take more than a couple weeks to heal, right?"_

"_I know, but I want this one to hurt."_

_She smiled. "You're such a grown up sometimes, Maggie."_

_I smiled back. "Can't I just stay here forever?"_

_She laughed. "You'll come again soon. You'll stay for a long time, too!"_

"_Really?" I asked. She nodded. "I can't wait!"_

"_Till then, my love…" she said. "Goodbye!"_

* * *

><p>I woke up in someone's arms. I opened my eyes weakly and saw Sanji carrying me. He looked incredibly somber.<p>

"Maggie-chan…" he said, looking at me. "Say goodbye."

I looked in the opposite direction and saw _Merry_. Her front half looked like it was about to come off at any moment.

"You guys ready?" Luffy asked.

"Yeah," they all said.

"What's happening?" I asked.

"We're saying goodbye to the _Merry_ right here," Sanji said.

"What…?" I asked, looking back at him.

Luffy held a flaming torch to the ship we'd sailed on since I stowed away! The _Merry_ saved me! How could I say goodbye to her now?

"_Merry_, the seabed is dark and lonely, so we'll watch you till the end," he said, about ready to set her on fire. "Maybe its good Usopp isn't here. There's no way he could bear this…"

He lowered the flame onto the ship and it caught fire.

Tears started spilling out of my eyes.

_Merry!_ I thought.

Within mere seconds, the deck of the _Merry_ was engulfed in flames. He threw the torch into the water.

I looked up to the crow's nest as the mast caught fire.

_Goodbye!_ I thought. _I… I had a lot of good times with you!_

Even our flag started burning.

"Thanks for carrying us till the end, _Merry_," Luffy said.

The whole _Merry_ was up in flames. Soon the mast broke off and fell into the water.

"I'm sorry," she said in our heads. "I wanted to carry you all even further! I'm so sorry… I wanted to continue going on adventures with you forever."

"_Merry_!" Chopper cried.

"But I-" she said.

"It's us who have to apologize, Merry!" Luffy yelled, crying. "I'm not good at steering… so I ran you into icebergs sometimes! And I tore your sails, too! Zoro and Sanji are stupid, too! They broke all sorts of things! Usopp would fix them, but he wasn't any good at it. So it's us who… It's us who…"

"But I've been so happy!" she said, slowly sinking into the water. "You've all taken care of me all this time! So thank you all! I've really have been happy… because I had you!"

"_Merry_!" Luffy cried out with all his breath.

Most of us were weeping at that point, me included. Soon, _Merry_ had completely sunk.

* * *

><p>I fell asleep for two days after the whole incident was finished.<p>

Nightmares of the men I killed haunted my dreams, as well as the thought of my father being so close.

When I woke up, Luffy was chowing down at the table by himself as Sanji kept bringing in more plates. Kokoro, Chimney and Gonbe all came to say hi as well.

Robin and Chopper were sitting on the edge of my bed.

"Ah, Maggie's awake!" Chopper said. "How are you feeling?"

"I've been better," I said, smiling. "You know, not having a hole in my stomach and all."

"If you don't mind us asking," Robin said, "how in the world did this happen?"

"Yeah, you just disappeared for a little bit," Chopper said. "We were all really worried.

"My dad got me," I said. "And we fought and we stabbed each other."

"Oh my," Robin said.

Chopper started freaking out, but Sanji calmed him down. "Just say the word and we'll go beat him up for you!" he said.

"No, I think we'll be ok," I said, smiling. "But thank you though."

"I can't believe your own dad would do something like that…" Chopper said. "It's going to take weeks to heal properly!"

"I figured as much…" I said, biting my lip. "Is it going to leave a scar?"

"Well yeah," he said. "But there are some herbal remedies that can stop it from leaving a scar, if you want me to-"

"No, it's fine. I want it to scar," I said. "It's only fun if you get a scar out of it, am I right?"

They all laughed.

Suddenly, Franky burst inside and struck a funny pose. It startled me a little bit because I could've sworn it was the navy.

"Listen!" he yelled. "I've got something important to discuss with you."

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	43. The Thousand Sunny

Franky started telling us a story about the strongest tree in the world called Adam. The wood from this legendary tree rarely appears on the black market and goes for huge prices. Franky admitted that he really wanted some of the wood, but it cost almost 200 million berries. Then, the day we came to town with all our money, Franky said he saw a chance and took it.

"You better not have bought something like that with our money!" Sanji fumed.

"Just keep listening!" Franky insisted. "A long time ago, I made the decision that I'd never build a ship again. But the next thing I know, I'm drawing up blueprints… My dream is to use that treasure tree to build one last ship, a dream ship that can cross any sea! So since I already have the tree, the blueprints, I'm going to build this ship. So, when it's done… will you guys set sail on the ship I've built?!"

"What?" they all said.

"Then, are you going to give that ship to us?!" Sanji asked, completely dumbfounded.

"That's right. Nothing would make me happier than for people I like to travel on this ship," he said, smirking hugely. "Well, that, and I kinda stole the money from you in the first place so it would be like I'm paying you guys back. So I swear, it's gonna be an incredible ship!"

"All right!" Nami cheered. "We'll take it! Thank you, Franky!"

I smiled and looked at how happy everyone was.

"Luffy, we're gonna get a ship!" Chopper exclaimed.

But Luffy didn't hear him, he was still sleep-eating.

All of a sudden, there was a huge boom and the wall blasted open.

"What the hell?" Sanji asked.

"Who's there?" Chopper asked.

"You guys are the Straw Hats, right?!" said a gruff voice beyond smoke. "I've got some guys who I want to meet Monkey D. Luffy."

When the dust cleared, there was a Navy Vice Admiral walking towards us. Sanji, Chopper, and Franky all stepped forward, ready to fight.

The man looked to Luffy and laughed. "He's as hopeless as ever."

He jumped into the air so fast, that I couldn't even follow it with my eyes!

"Wake up!" the man yelled, punching Luffy in the head.

"Luffy-nii!" I cried.

"Ow…! That hurt!" he said, holding his head.

"What do you mean that hurt? That punch shouldn't have an effect on rubber," Sanji said.

"There's no mean to ward off a fist of love!" the man said. "Looks like you've gone on quite the rampage, huh, Luffy?"

"Grandpa?" Luffy asked, finally recognizing the man.

"WHAT?" we all said, horribly confused.

"Luffy, isn't there something you need to apologize to me for?" he asked.

"Is this guy really your grandfather?" Sanji asked.

"Yeah, don't mess with him!" Luffy said. "When I was little, he almost killed me a bunch of times!"

"Now, don't say that!" Garp said. "I shoved you into a bottomless pit, threw you into the jungle at night, attached you to balloons and let them fly; I did all those things in order to make you a strong man!"

"Now we get where his endless ability to survive comes from…" Sanji remarked.

"I entrusted you with my friend and had you train with Ace, but now I take my eyes off you for a second and this happens! I trained you to become a strong marine, not a pirate!"

Luffy stood up and yelled, "I told you over and over again that I wanted to be a pirate!"

"You were corrupted by Red Hair! How stupid of you!" Garp retorted back.

"Shanks saved my life!" argued Luffy.

Garp grabbed Luffy by the shirt and said, "How dare you talk back to me!"

"I'm sorry!" Luffy yelled, begging him not to punch him. "Let me go!"

"Luffy's captured by the navy!" Chopper yelled.

I had no idea what to do and it's not like I could do much to begin with either.

That's when they both fell asleep.

"What should we do…?" I asked.

"I don't know, I've never been in this kind of situation before," Franky admitted.

But Garp awoke almost instantaneously. His brow furrowed and he punched Luffy to wake him up again.

Garp heard some commotion outside and it was Zoro apparently fighting some of his men. Luffy went out to go stop him. But a couple minutes later he came back with two of his old friends, Coby and Helmeppo. The navy men started repairing the wall Garp had previously broken.

"Come to think of it Luffy, I heard that you saw your old man," Garp said, banging a hammer on a nail.

"What? My dad?" he asked. "I have a dad?"

"Oh, he didn't tell you who he was?" Garp asked. "I heard you saw him in Loguetown."

"Huh?" he asked. "What's he like?"

"His name is Monkey D. Dragon. He's a revolutionary," Garp said casually.

Nami and Sanji started freaking out. Apparently his dad was a dangerous man, the head of the revolutionary army.

* * *

><p>"Well, you don't need to worry about me capturing you on this island," Garp said after they had repaired the wall. You are my grandson, after all. I'm gonna give the Navy a good excuse, so stay here and rest easy! I only came here to let you talk to these two so I'm going back."<p>

"All right, see ya!" Luffy said.

Garp punched Luffy to the ground, yelling he said goodbye too casually.

"Wait, before I go, I do need to relay a message to one of your crewmates," he said, looking around the room. When his eyes rested on me, he said, "Magnolia, this is from your father."

He tossed a piece of paper at my bed and then left.

I gingerly lifted my hand to unfold the paper, quite nervous.

"What does it say?" Nami asked.

"Hold on," I said, unfolding it. I felt a surge of blood rushed through me as I read the five cold words on the paper. "_You're not my daughter anymore._" I shook my head and crumpled up the paper angrily.

I looked up and everyone was staring at me.

"He disowned me," I said. "I don't really care. I mean, you guys are my family so I don't really need him."

"Yeah…" Nami said sadly. "Well, I'm going to the pool!"

Luffy went outside to go catch up with Coby and Helmeppo.

"I wanna go to the pool!" I said. "Chopper?"

"You're not allowed to swim! You have to rest, Maggie!" he said.

"It's not like I could swim anyway!" I said. "Please can I go? Please?"

He hesitated for a bit before saying, "If you get your stomach wet, it might get infected so… Just don't get your stomach wet!"

"Yes!" I cheered.

"I'll carry you Maggie-chan!" Sanji offered.

"Thank you!" I said happily.

He picked me up gingerly and followed Nami to the pool. I sat under an umbrella in a sunbathing chair and watched Chimney, Gonbe, Kokoro, and Nami play in the water.

"It must be nice to swim…" I wondered.

Eventually, the whole crew came to the pool, even Sogeking! Sanji started barbequing some food for all of us. Then, the Franky Family came to come eat with us! They even brought Sodom, Gomorrah, and the giants with them! Even the craftsmen came around for the party, including Iceberg himself!

Sogeking stacked a bunch of tables and started singing about himself on top of them.

We all had so much fun eating and chatting with everyone. Sanji or Zoro kept having to carry me everywhere since I still couldn't walk. Luffy was having a blast making everyone laugh with his chopstick-nose trick. Zoro started drinking heavily with the craftsmen of Galley-La. Sanji was cooking barbeque for everyone when he wasn't pawning over Nami and Robin. Chopper was pestering me about my injuries and bade me to go to bed around nine.

"But I want to stay up!" I pleaded. "Please! Everyone else is!"

"No, in order for your wound to heal properly, you need lots of rest, Maggie," he said sternly. "Go to bed!"

"Fine…" I said.

Robin and Nami escorted me back to the inn we were staying while Chopper carried me back in heavy point. When they had put me in bed, they went back to the party and said goodbye.

Begrudgingly, I fell asleep.

* * *

><p>When I woke up, everyone was already eating breakfast. Zoro had a newspaper and was reading some of the horrible things they had said about us.<p>

"Ooh, looks like our bounties went up again," he said, smiling.

"Do you think I'll get a bounty?" Chopper asked dreamily.

"Maybe," Sanji said. "But the ladies are gonna have to watch out from now on. I bet my poster captures my devilishly handsome looks perfectly."

Nami punched him for being annoying.

"I wonder when the ship will be ready," I said. "I hope we can get our own bedrooms!"

"What?" Luffy asked. "We're getting a ship?!"

"Yeah, Franky's building one for us," Nami said.

"Sweet!" Luffy said, starting to dance around.

"Sanji, can I have some breakfast, too?" I asked.

"Of course, mademoiselle!" he said, bringing me a tray of food. "Breakfast in bed for the wounded beauty."

I blushed and thanked him for the food.

Nami wanted to go shopping, but apparently most all of our money was gone because of the party last night. She beat Luffy up so hard, he was almost unrecognizable.

"I wanted to get gorgeous furniture for the ship!" she sobbed.

Robin went over to comfort her. "Let's go hunt for a bargain, then," she said.

So they left with the remaining money to go shop. Sanji also followed them out to go get more food for the new ship.

* * *

><p>A couple mornings later, Nami was up bright and early to tell everyone that the log pose had set and when the ship Franky was building for us was ready, we could head out any time.<p>

"Looks like it's pointing down a little bit…" Nami said.

"Of course!" Kokoro said. "The next island is Fishman Island!"

Sanji was really excited, but Nami had mixed feelings.

"Well, it's not easy to get there," Kokoro warned.

"It's on the seabed, right?" Robin asked. "That's very deep."

Kokoro started telling a story about the Florian Triangle, where most ships go missing while trying to get to Fishman Island. "Some people even see ghosts ships with no crew sailing around…" she said spookily.

"We can meet skeletons that are alive?!" Luffy asked, excited.

I started to get a little bit worried about going there. It felt like there were butterflies in my stomach when she had said all those creepy things about getting there.

"No!" Nami said, terrified. "I don't want to see those creepy ships! I don't wanna go!"

"But some of those ships are bound to be full of treasure if their crews were destroyed," Robin pointed out.

Suddenly, Nami became super excited and wanted to leave right away.

"Well, we have plenty of food, so if we get lost, we'll be fine," Sanji mentioned.

Then, Chimney, Gonbe, and the square-haired girls that follow Franky around rushed in yelling our names.

"What's up?" Luffy asked.

"Big Bro Franky asked us to bring you guys!" said the yellow one.

"The dream ship has been completed!" the pink one said.

"It's super incredible!" Chimney cheered.

I smiled and started waving my arms excitedly.

"Really?! It's already done?!" Luffy asked. "That was so quick!"

"All the top-notch shipwrights worked on it day and night!" the yellow girl said.

"Yeah! They did!" the pink one said.

"All right! Let's go!" Luffy said.

But as we were about to leave, the other Franky Family members ran by, yelling our names.

Sanji picked me up and we went outside to meet them.

They were all out of breath from running frantically.

"We came to ask you a huge favor!" said one of them. "Did you see the wanted posters?!"

"Wanted posters?" I asked.

"Your bounties are all crazy!" he said. "All of you are wanted now!"

I gasped.

"All eight of you guys have bounties now, look," he said. He dropped down all of the wanted posters on the ground for us to see. "Straw Hat Luffy, you have a 300 million berry bounty."

Luffy laughed heartily and cheered happily that it went up.

"Pirate Hunter Zoro, you have a 120 million berry bounty," he continued. Zoro smirked, pleased. "Cat Burglar Nami, you have a 16 million berry bounty."

"Crap…" she said, not particularly happy.

"Cotton Candy Lover Chopper, the gang's pet, you have a 50 berry bounty," he said.

I started laughing, but it hurt my stomach too much, so I had to stop.

Chopper just stared in stunned silence.

"Devil's Child Nico Robin, 80 million berry bounty," he continued again. She smiled softly. "Black Foot Sanji…"

Sanji looked horrified. "Who the hell is that supposed to be?!" he asked.

"What?! Let me see!" I said. He set me on the ground, closer to the poster. It looked like the marines didn't have enough time to photograph everyone, so they drew a picture of Sanji that looked nothing like him! I couldn't help but to burst out laughing, and even though it hurt like heck, I couldn't stop.

Everyone joined in laughing at his poster.

"Black Foot Sanji, failed to obtain a picture, 77 million berry bounty…" he said. Sanji passed me off to Zoro so he could pout.

"Hey look!" Luffy said. "Even Sogeking's got a bounty!"

"Wait, but it has nothing to do with you guys, it has to do with this! Cyborg Franky, 44 million berry bounty," he said.

"Wow, good for Franky!" I said, happily.

I tried to crane my neck to look at everyone else's bounty, but they were just out of my sight.

_Pfft… I probably have a lower bounty than Nami. Who am I kidding? It's probably lower than Chopper's._ I thought.

"If Big Bro Franky stays in Water Seven, he'll be in danger. If he gets caught, I doubt we'll be strong enough to rescue him!" he said desperately. "So we discussed something… Straw Hat, please! You gotta take him with you, by force even! if you have to!"

"You guys didn't have to ask," Luffy said. "I decided he was gonna be our shipwright, anyway!"

"Seriously!" the whole Franky Family asked. "You guys are cool with it?"

I was a little taken aback, but it's not like we were gonna say no to Luffy.

"Of course!" Robin said.

"Looks like you have your answer," Zoro said.

"Thank you so much!" they all said in unison. He turned around and said they should all go now that they had their answer.

"Hey, Zoro-nii!" I said. "How much is Sogeking worth?"

He looked over and said, "30 million."

"W-what about…" I hesitated. "What about mine?"

Luffy picked up my poster and said, "Way to go Maggie!"

"60 million," Zoro said, smirking.

"6 million?" I asked. "Sweet!"

"No, 60 million, Maggie," Luffy said, showing me the poster. "Clock-Eye Magnolia, 60 million!"

"What…?" I asked. "There must be some mistake… I can't be…! What?"

"Nice job," Zoro said.

"Wow, go Maggie-chan!" Sanji said.

Luffy picked up the rest of the posters, ran back inside to pack, and said, "Let's go see the ship! Hurry guys!"

Nami, Chopper and Sanji were all super somber as they packed up their clothes and everything else from the inn. Zoro had to set me down so that he could help carry some of the heavy stuff.

"Wait, where's my bag?" I asked. I hadn't seen it in a while and suddenly got worried.

"I found it," Robin said, picking it up from under the bed. "Here you go!" She handed it to me and I thanked her.

"You guys are all prepared for the worst regarding Usopp, right?" Zoro said bluntly.

"Yeah," Luffy said with a hint of sadness.

I didn't even want to think about it.

"Why does mine have to be the only one that's a drawing…?" Sanji moped as he picked up his giant bag.

"Well, it does look exactly like you," Zoro pointed out.

I snickered quietly.

"WHAT?!" Sanji yelled, ready to fight him.

Chopper started complaining to Luffy about being branded as our pet. "I'm a pirate, too! I fought hard like a man!" he said. "I'm gonna file a complaint!"

"There's always next time!" Luffy said.

"Come on, Straw Hat!" one of the girls with square hair said from outside. "Come on, they're waiting for you!"

I was so excited to see the ship, that everything else on my mind was put to rest immediately. Sanji picked me up again and we headed out the door.

Chimney and the rest ran ahead of the rest of us to show us the way to the new ship.

"Guys! We brought them!" the girls said.

Paulie and a bunch of the other craftsmen were sleeping on the ground. I looked up and saw a huge drape over our ship.

I squealed with excitement. "I hope the crow's nest is big!" I wondered.

Iceberg got up to greet us.

"Where's Franky?" Luffy asked him.

"Unfortunately, he had to go somewhere," Iceberg said. "But the ship is completed. I'll show it to you in place of Franky. It's incredible! When I saw the blueprints, I knew it was going to be fantastic. It can definitely sail through any waters!"

"Hurry up and show it to us!" Luffy said impatiently.

"Yeah, yeah!" I said.

"Here's Franky's message to you, Straw Hat," he said, taking hold of the cloth. "If you're going to be King of the Pirates someday…" he started pulling it off dramatically. "Board this king of the animals' ship!"

It was so colorful! Yellow and red and wood everywhere! The crow's nest looked much bigger from what I could see. It was so much bigger and grander than the _Merry_! The head piece was that of a lion. It was just fantastic!

When we got on the deck of the ship, it had a lawn instead of wood! It even had a slide to get from the higher deck, to the lower deck!

Oh, how I wished I could run around and see everything.

Of course, Sanji ran into the kitchen with me first. The kitchen was huge! It had a bar and a huge dining table!

"The fridge has a lock on it!" he said, running around the kitchen. "Oh, I could die."

"That's great!" I said. "I wanna see everything! Sanji-nii, let's go."

"Give me a moment, Maggie-chan…" he said, almost tearing up.

"Chopper-nii!" I called. He came into the kitchen and took me from Sanji with heavy point so he could have a moment with the kitchen. "Let's explore everything!"

"Yeah!" he said.

He ran back down to the main deck and opened up a little hatch in the side. "There's room for an aquarium!"

"Really?!" I asked. "That's so cool!"

He ran through one of the doors and started looking in every room. He found a doctor's office and almost fainted in excitement. We even found the girls' room, but there were only two beds in it. I frowned and wondered if Nami would make me sleep on the floor. We saw the bathrooms, the boys' dorm, and explored a longue downstairs. Finally, I couldn't wait anymore!

"Crow's nest!" I said. "I want to see the crow's nest!"

"All right!" Chopper said, coming back onto the deck. There was a huge ladder to climb up to get there, so I had to hand onto his neck while he climbed up. When we got up there, I almost died.

"There's a huge telescope!" I said. "You can see everything from up here!"

"Look, there's another ladder!" Chopper said.

And when he climbed up it, I swear I could've almost died of excitement… Again!

"I get my own room!" I shrieked with glee.

The crow's nest had two levels, the lower one for observing, and the top level was the coolest loft-bedroom all for me!

"Oh my gosh!" I yelled. "This is the best day ever!"

"That's so cool, Maggie!" he said. "I wish I could get my own room…"

"You can always come visit me!" I said.

"Sweet!" he cheered.

"Let's go down and tell everyone!" I said.

"Ok!" he agreed.

When he had finished climbing all the ladders to get onto the main deck, Robin looked over to me and her eyes widened. All of a sudden, one of her hands sprouted from my head and covered my eyes.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"It's nothing," she said.

"Give me my swimsuit back, Straw Hat," I heard Franky say from far away.

"Join us!" he said.

"You think you can make me join you by taking my swimsuit?" he asked.

"I can help you get him to join," Robin said. "Dos Fleurs. Grab."

All I heard was the horrible screams of Franky. What the heck was she doing to him?!

"You're gonna crush them, Robin!" Chopper yelled, completely terrified.

"Hey, Robin! I still want him to be a man when he joins us!" Luffy yelled.

"I'm not going to let go unless you give me a good reason not to join us," she said.

"I still have things to do on this island…!" he said, writhing in pain. "I'm not even a shipwright anymore, guys! It's the last ship I'll ever build."

"Franky, it's not a dream ship yet," I heard Iceberg say. He started arguing with Franky about various reasons why he should join us and be our shipwright. "Isn't it about time you start living your own dream?!"

His comrades through him a bag and said heartfelt goodbyes to him.

"You guys are all…" Franky said, tearing up.

"Robin stop! You're gonna make him a woman!" Luffy begged.

"He's crying!" Chopper added.

He started cursing Robin.

"I only did it once," she said. "The first time, but he's trying to play it off to pretend that's the reason he's crying."

"Once?" Luffy asked.

Yet I still heard Franky weep.

"Luffy, your grandpa is back!" Zoro yelled from off in the distance.

"They're looking for us now! They're going to attack!" Sanji yelled.

"What?! I thought he said he wasn't going to attack us!" Luffy said.

_Well, marines aren't exactly the most trustworthy…_ I thought bitterly.

"Hurry, let's set sail!" they yelled.

"I'm giving this back!" Luffy yelled. "Now come on board, Franky. Board my ship."

"Don't be so cocky," he said. "You guys are total amateurs who could only manage makeshift repairs! It'd be a pity not to have a good shipwright on board such a beautiful ship… I guess I have no choice, but to help you guys out! I, Franky, will be the shipwright on your ship!"

"YES!" Luffy cheered. "We got a new crewmember!"

"Can I look now?" I asked Robin.

"Nope," she said. "Not yet."

When Franky had finally boarded the ship, Robin took her hand off of my eyes.

"Set sail!" Luffy said.

Chopper went to go put me in the sick bay where I'd be safe, so I missed all the action of our first sail aboard our new ship!

"Wait!" I said to myself. "What about Usopp-nii!"

I was lying down on the sick bay's bed, wishing desperately that I could get up.

That's when the first two cannonballs hit the water with huge booms.

"Ahh, I swear, if he's not on this ship…" I said, but I didn't even want to think about the possibility.

But then, I heard cheering above me and even Usopp's voice! I almost started crying, but one the cannonballs continued coming for us.

All of a sudden, there was a huge jolt, like we were flying in the air! And when we landed, I almost fell off the sick bay bed.

Chopper came to come get me soon after and we all had a party.

Everyone raised a glass as Luffy gave a toast, "To Robin and Usopp, who came back to us, to our new friend, Franky, and to our pirate ship, the _Thousand Sunny_!"

We all cheered back.

"Let's go!" he said. "Our next destination is Fishman Island!"

We all had so much fun eating on the deck and laughing. Usopp came up to me and said, "Maggie, aren't you glad to have me back?"

I looked away and said, "Hmph!"

"What?" he asked. "Didn't you miss me?"

"Hmph!"

"Come on, don't be a stranger!" he said. "I apologized for leaving the gang, you know."

"You didn't apologize to me!" I said. "I didn't hear it, so it didn't happen!"

Everyone laughed at us, but I didn't care.

"Fine…" he said. "I'm sorry for leaving the gang, Maggie."

"Good!" I said, looking at him with a big smile. "Welcome back to the family, Usopp-nii!"

I hugged him tightly and everyone cheered.

"_Nii_?" Franky asked.

"It's just something Maggie does," Sanji said. "We're all a family, so she treats us like we're her brothers and sisters."

"Yeah!" I said. "Robin's the mom, Luffy-nii, Zoro-nii, Usopp-nii, Chopper-nii, Sanji-nii, and Nami-nee are the siblings!"

"So what can I be?" Franky asked.

"Hmm…" I said. "You can be the weird uncle."

"Suuuuuuper!" he said, striking a pose.

Everyone laughed.

As I looked at everyone's smiling faces, I knew that I was home.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong>

**Sorry I haven't been updating again! I really need to make a schedule or something…**

**The crow's nest loft was my idea as a gift from Franky to Maggie as an apology for what Franky's family did to Maggie. Also, I just want to defend my reason for Maggie's bounty for those of you that might complain it's too high:**

**Maggie is twelve, and she took down a Vice Admiral by herself. Now, I know she isn't one of the monster trio, so I kept her bounty lower than Sanji, Zoro, and Robin (even though Robin isn't one of the trio, she's still pretty strong), so there you have it. I don't know about you, but if I was in the World Government, I'd be afraid of Clock-Eye Magnolia.**

**Oh, also, I'm on spring break right now so I'll probably update again this week and on a side note, I'm turning sixteen this week too! :D**

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


	44. New Face, New Place

I had to forgo my first night sleeping in my new room to sleep in the sick bay, like a 'proper patient'. Needless to say, I wasn't all that happy with Chopper when he broke the news to me that I had to stay in the sick bay till I was fully recovered, and I couldn't resume my regular duties as watchman either.

"But…!" I tried to argue. "I'm just a little banged up! I can still look out a telescope, for heaven's sake!"

"What if you fall?" Chopper said. "I can't have you getting hurt up there with no way to get down."

"But please! Just one day, I swear, I won't-"

"No buts, Maggie!" Chopper said. "Doctor's orders are absolute."

"Fine…" I grumbled. "What am I supposed to do other than sit there and stare at the wall?"

"We can bring you books!" Nami said, looking at Robin.

"We'd love to keep you company," Robin said with a smile.

"But you're the navigator!" Luffy pointed out. "What about getting to Fishman Island soon?"

"Oh yeah…" she said. "Sorry, Maggie."

"Well, I'm still available," Robin said.

I smiled back at her and then turned my head to Chopper. "So how long will it take to recover?"

"Three weeks, at most," he said. "I've never seen someone who can heal as fast as you! Usually, this kind of wound would take months to heal."

I smiled and said, "Well, you know, I can heal myself right now if I wanted too. I have a healing ability with my Devil Fruit."

"Then why haven't you done it yet?" Chopper asked, confused.

"If I healed myself, it wouldn't leave a scar," I said.

"Why do you want a scar?" Robin asked.

"To remind me of what my dad did to my family," I said. "And also, I think this will be a good lesson for me. You can solve everything with Devil Fruits."

"How admirable," Robin said.

"So that's how you healed me back at Enies Lobby!" Luffy said.

I nodded.

"Ok, everyone clear out now!" Chopper said. "Maggie needs rest."

I sighed and said goodbye to them as they left the sick bay.

"This sucks…" I pouted.

* * *

><p>Robin came back later in the day with a handful of books. Chopper allowed her to stay and read with me since he could trust her not to make too much noise. Sanji brought us snacks around midday and checked with Chopper on my condition.<p>

"I'm fine…" I said bitterly. "It only aches a little and when I move."

"You better make Maggie-chan even healthier than she was before!" Sanji warned Chopper.

"I will!" Chopper said resolutely.

He said goodbye to Robin and me and then left, leaving the tray of snacks.

Robin stayed with me almost all day, reading a novel quietly to me as Chopper periodically checked up on me. Other crew members came in momentarily throughout the day to keep us company and raise my spirits.

It stayed like this for about two horribly boring weeks. Robin had read me two novellas by then and Chopper said the wound on my abdomen wasn't healing as fast as he originally thought it would. At first, he blamed it on stress and officially kicked out everyone from being able to visit me. Then, after that, he blamed it on me not getting enough nutrients, and had Sanji prepare special meals for me. Chopper forced me to eat even when I wasn't hungry (like usual). And after a miserable one and a half week of this, Chopper finally cleared me to leave the sick bay and resume my normal tendencies.

It took a while for me to get on my feet again, but Chopper helped me get into the grove of walking again in no time at all. Finally I was allowed to see everyone and take a bath.

When I stumbled back into dinner for the first time, they had all prepared a huge party for me. Sanji had made a huge cake for everyone and it looked like Nami had made a card for me with everyone's signatures on it saying they were all so happy I was doing better.

I admit that I did cry when I walked into the room and saw everyone's smiling faces looking at me.

"Congrats on getting better, Maggie!" they all said.

"You guys…!" I said, wiping away my tears of joy. "You didn't have too."

"Of course we did, what're you talking about?" Luffy said, holding a fork into the air.

"Come on, Maggie-chan, have some cake!" Sanji implored. He pulled out a chair for me to sit in at the table and passed me a slice of cake, vanilla with strawberry frosting.

"Thank you!" I said to everyone. I looked to Chopper and said, "You're the one that made it happen, Chopper-nii. You're the best doctor ever!"

"Aww, that doesn't make me happy, stupid!" he said, clearly eating it up.

We all laughed and started devouring the most delicious cake Sanji had ever made.

When the party was over, Nami proposed that she, Robin, and I all take a bath together, to which we both agreed to.

As I looked in the mirror at my scar for the first time, it was quite disgusting. The scar itself was in the shape of a crescent on the left side of my lower abdomen. Sure, it still had stitches in it and it wasn't healed completely, but it was still really ugly.

Nami and Robin both said it would be fine since clothes would cover it, but I couldn't help but to feel a little self-conscious when they looked at it.

"Well, I don't know about you, Robin, but I'm very jealous of you, Maggie," Nami said while she was washing my hair. "You get your own room and everything."

"Oh, yes," Robin said. "I'm quite jealous as well."

I snickered and said, "Being watchman has its perks sometimes."

"Too bad you have to come all the way down here if you need to go to the bathroom," Robin said.

"Oh yeah…" I pouted. "Didn't think about that…"

"Just don't fall in the middle of the night coming down the ladder," Nami warned. "It's a long way down."

"Yeah, that would be terrible," I said, not even wanting to think about it.

* * *

><p>That night, the worst thing happened. I woke up in the middle of the night and I had to pee. At first, I just lied in my bed, not wanting to think about it, but I really had to go. I tried convincing myself that I really didn't have to pee all that bad. The bladder was a flexible organ, but nature was calling my name. Loudly.<p>

Begrudgingly I got up and fumbled around looking for a candle. Sadly, there were none.

"Great…" I muttered.

After I yawned quite loudly, I found the ladder that went to the lower level of the crow's nest and climbed down ever so carefully. Then, I started climbing down the longest ladder on the ship to get back to the main deck.

I was doing pretty well until halfway, my foot slipped on one of the rungs. I screamed as I started falling down the ladder. But when I sure I was done for, something stopped me!

I looked down and in the pale moonlight, and saw that Luffy's arm had wrapped around me.

"That was a close one!" he said from the deck, lowering me to the ground. "What're you doing up this late?"

"I have to pee…" I said, taking a huge sigh of relief.

"Ah," he said. "You know, that's really dangerous…"

"Yeah, but I have to pee and there isn't a bathroom up there," I said, finally stepping on the floor. "Wait, what're you doing up this late?"

He laughed and said, "I was gonna get a midnight snack but they locked the fridge and I couldn't open it…"

"Oh," I said. "Well, goodnight."

"'Night, Maggie!" he said, walking off. "Be careful!"

"I will, Luffy-nii!" I called back. "Thank you!"

* * *

><p>The next day while I was up in the crow's nest, Franky came to show me the layout of everything.<p>

"You've got you telescope here," he said, "and it even functions as a training room! There're weights and everything."

"Thank you, Franky," I said. "Really, it's all amazing."

"Thank you!" he said. "Oh, and I almost forgot. When you see something, you can call it out to the rest of us with this!" He pointed to a transponder snail. "It's a loud speaker for the whole ship."

"Sweet!" I exclaimed. "That's so cool!"

"Have fun up here, kid!" he said, stepping down the ladder.

"I will!" I called down to him.

There were plush seats all in a circle around the crow's nest, so I just picked a spot and started looking out onto the water.

I sighed and smiled to myself.

"This is the best…!" I said, not being able to contain my happiness.

Then, Zoro showed up. "I'm gonna train up here, ok?" he said curtly.

"Sure, go right ahead!" I cheered.

"What're you so smiley about?' he asked.

"I'm just happy, that's all!" I replied.

He smiled and said, "That's good."

He set his swords on the cushions. All of a sudden, he pulled out these huge weights and started doing reps.

"Woah…" I said, watching him. "He's so strong."

I shook my head, trying to focus, and looked back out upon the waters. But I couldn't take my eyes off of Zoro. The weights were at least two times as big as me! But then, something else caught my eye. Behind Zoro, it looked like there was something in the water by the windows. I ran around him and looked out the window to get a better look at something floating in the water. I fished out my smaller telescope out of my bag to see what it was.

"You see something?" he asked, continuing to do the reps.

I nodded and looked around for the transponder snail. "Ah, there," I said, walking over to it. I picked up the receiver and pressed a button, "Um, guys, I see something in the water off the starboard bow."

I looked out the window and saw everyone was going to go look at it. I started climbing down the ladder to meet everyone there.

"It's a barrel!" Usopp said.

"Maybe it's full of treasure!" Luffy said.

They fished it out of the sea and brought it on board. Zoro eventually came down to come see as well.

Usopp, Chopper, and Luffy were all super excited about the barrel they started dancing around crazily, but Nami knew that the barrel had nothing to do with treasure.

"It contains booze and rations," she said.

"How would you know? You haven't looking inside it!" Luffy said childishly.

"Well, the banner does say offering of treasure to the sea god…" she said. "It's a drifting barrel."

"Then we can't do anything with it?" Usopp asked.

"Well, since we picked it up," Zoro said, "why not drink the booze?"

"That'll make the god angry at you!" Usopp hissed.

"You can drink as long as you pray first," Nami warned.

"I don't do that kinda stuff," he said coolly, walking towards the barrel.

"I agree!" Franky said. "Let's try the booze!"

"Well, we should at least refill it after we empty it," Robin said. "It's custom."

"Let's open it!" Usopp yelled.

The boys all rushed to open up the barrel. When Luffy had finally prayed, he untied the knot and opened up the barrel.

But as soon as he did, there was a huge boom and a flash of light. Up in the sky, a flare went off.

"What?" I asked, shielding my eyes.

"I hope someone did that as a stupid prank, but just maybe…" Robin said, looking a little worried, "someone may come after our ship."

I gasped. "Why did you open it then?!" I yelled to Luffy.

"Hey, don't look at me! Zoro wanted to open it first!" he said.

"Hey!" Zoro yelled, not wanting to be blamed.

I raced up the ladder to keep a lookout for someone on the horizon coming for us.

"I don't see anyone yet!" I called over the loud speaker.

Someone called from down below for everyone to get back to their stations and that we were going to be sailing away from that place.

While everyone got ready downstairs, I started to see dark clouds roll in.

"Uh oh…" I said, getting a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach. I sat down in the middle of the room, away from all the walls, and looked out the windows as the storm settled in.

The rain started out light, but in mere seconds, it was pounding on the windows as if they were going to break! Huge flashes of lightning and loud thunder booms started growing brighter and louder! But the ship started paddling away with it's new cola-powered paddles!

I came down after the ship had cleared the storm.

It was still almost midday, but the whole sky was black with heavy fog.

"Why is it so dark…?" I wondered.

"Yeah, it's kinda creepy," Chopper said.

"Do you think we might have stumbled into that one sea…?" Nami asked.

"That means we're close to Fishman Island then!" Usopp said, trying to look on the bright side.

"Yeah, but we have to cross these haunted waters," Luffy said, sneaking up behind and poking me.

I shrieked and whipped around. I scowled when I saw his face and said, "That wasn't funny…"

"What was that sea called again?" Zoro asked.

"The Florian Triangle!" Franky said creepily. "These are mysterious waters where everything disappears without explanation!"

"Stop, it's not funny!" I said, trembling a little bit.

He had thoroughly creeped out me, Nami, Chopper, and Usopp!

Luffy laughed darkly and said, "These waters are haunted!"

I clutched Zoro for support and said, "I don't wanna go! I don't wanna go! Let's turn back, ok?"

"There's even a living skeleton!" Luffy said, bending down next to me. "Granny Kokoro said so!"

"In this sea, over 100 ships vanish every year," Sanji said, lighting a match and holding it under his face. The wind blew ominously through as he spoke. "And to top it, I've heard ghost ships carrying dead wander these waters, waiting to eat anyone who get in their way!"

I screamed and jumped about five feet into the air.

"Ok, that's enough," Robin said. "Stop scaring her."

I landed on the ground and curled up into a ball, trying to convince myself they were just making it all up, but the thought of all those things terrified me!

All of a sudden, I heard a voice in the wind.

"Yo ho ho ho…" it sang.

I stopped breathing and turned my head slowly towards everyone. "Whoever's doing that, stop! You already scared me enough!"

"It wasn't me…" everyone said.

"Well it had to be-"

I heard it again and shrunk back in terror.

Usopp screamed. When I saw what he was looking at, I almost fainted. There was a huge ghost ship approaching!

I shrieked as well and hid behind everyone.

"They're gonna eat us!" I cried. "Don't let them eat us!"

I shut my eyes in fear as the voice grew louder and louder as the ship came closer and closer.

"Plug your ears!" Usopp screamed. "It'll curse you! Pretend you can't hear anything or they'll drag you under!"

I plugged my ears, horrified and cowered behind all of my family.

I opened my eyes to take a quick look and saw a figure of a person on board the ship.

I winced and shut my eyes and ears again.

"Did you see that just now?!" Luffy yelled. "A skeleton was singing!"

"We're all gonna die!" I screamed hopelessly!

"Let's go! You all heard it too!" Luffy said. "Come on! There really is a living skeleton!"

"Hold it!" Sanji said, grabbing Luffy so he couldn't run away.

Zoro held out a bunch of sticks. "Go on," he said. "We're going to draw to see who goes aboard that ship with Luffy."

I eyed the small sticks in his hand and hoped to God that I wouldn't have to go.

"Why not just send whoever wants to go?!" Nami asked.

"Then there won't be anyone to protect us!" Usopp replied.

We all seemed suddenly happy to draw those sticks.

"Two people with the shortest sticks get to go," Zoro said, holding them out again.

I waited for everyone else to draw their sticks before I got mine and smirked maliciously. "Tick-Tock!" I said, stopping time.

I looked at everyone sticks and my own. I had the shortest stick and trading with the person who had the longest one, who turned out to be Nami.

"I'm so sorry about this…" I said. "Un-Tock."

"What the hell did you do, Maggie?" Nami asked, seeing her stick.

"Nothing!" I said innocently.

"You're evil…" she said, moping.

Sanji and Nami ended up having to go with Luffy aboard the scary ghost ship.

* * *

><p>Well, long story short, the skeleton named Brook ended up being a super funny guy and they invited him over on our ship for some tea and lunch. Luffy also asked him to join our crew, but I decided to freak out about that later.<p>

"You have splendid dining room and kitchen!" he said looking all around. "It's all so wonderful!"

Franky thanked him for his sharp eye, but Sanji told him not to get to friendly with the skeleton.

Sanji prepared a wonderful meal full of octopus dishes, but my stomach was too scared to accept anything, so I had to refrain from eating, but it did look super delicious.

Brook told us about why he became a skeleton in the first place. He died out at sea with the rest of his crew, but because he ate the Revive-Revive Fruit, his soul came back to him and he's alive again. But before he came back, his soul got lost and it wandered around the sea for a long time before finding his body.

He also explained that he hated ghosts and looking like he did. Nami brought out a mirror, trying to show him that he looked like a ghost, and said, "Have you seen yourself lately?"

BUT HIS REFLECTION DIDN'T SHOW UP!

"HE'S A VAMPIRE!" we all screamed.

"That's so cool!" Luffy yelled, bewildered.

"He doesn't have a shadow either!" Usopp pointed out.

I scooted to the far end of the table, completely terrified of our new guest.

"The story as to why I'm a skeleton and the story as to why I don't have a shadow are completely unrelated," he said grimly. He sat down and started drinking some more tea. "You see, a certain man stole my shadow a few years ago. And having lost my shadow, I am no longer able to exist in the world of light."

"But… you're still alive," Luffy pointed out.

"No, the light of the sun," Brook explained. "I'm only alive now because I avoid the sunlight her on the foggy sea."

"Wh-what happens if you go into th-the sun…?" I asked nervously.

"My body would be obliterated!" he said grimly. "I saw it happen to someone once. It was terrifying!"

"But… why?" I asked, confused.

"When you stand in the light, you have a shadow on the ground," Brook said. "Since I don't have a shadow, my body can't reflect light. That's why I can't be seen in mirrors. In other words, the light rejects my very existence!"

"Wow, your life sucks," Sanji said.

"Even so, I've scraped by!" he said merrily. He laughed heartily. "I'm so glad I met you people! I was all alone on that huge ship with nowhere to go since it's got a broken rudder… I just drifted for several decades. It was so lonely, I wanted to die! but I'm glad I've lived such a long life. People are great! You're all so joyful! You invited me to join your crew, right? That makes me so happy, thank you! But I am afraid I must decline your offer."

"Huh?! Why?!" Luffy asked.

"My shadow's been stolen," he repeated. "I can't go out into the sun! It would only be a matter of time before I was destroyed."

"Don't be stupid!" Luffy yelled. "If all you need is your shadow, I'll take it back for you!"

I gasped.

Brook looked amazed.

"Someone stole it? Who was it? Where is he?" Luffy continued.

"You're really a great guy…" Brook said, sounding like he was about to cry. "But I can't tell you. I wouldn't ask you to die for me when we've only just met!"

"The enemy's that strong?" Franky asked. Brook nodded. "Come on, just give us a name."

"My lips are sealed," he said. "I honestly don't know where he is. I don't even know if I'll see him again before my second life comes to an end, but if we do, I'll fight him. But putting that aside… Let's sing!" He pulled out a violin and began playing. "I was a musician on my pirate ship, you know!"

Luffy was set on having him in our crew now. He had wanted a musician since I came on board!

But all of a sudden he screamed and fell back.

"Ghost!" he said, pointing to the wall.

I whirled my head around and sure enough, there was a ghost there.

I screamed so loud, people could probably hear it on the next island over.

The ship started rattling as it slowly came out of the wall and floated above our heads. Brook ran out of the kitchen and looked outside.

"They've blocked the path in front of you!" Brook said.

There was a huge wall in front of the ship.

I gasped and looked down in shame. "If I'd been at my post this wouldn't have happened…"

"No, it's fine, Maggie," Luffy said. "But what is it?"

"It's the back gate!" he said, running back into the kitchen and out the aft. We all followed him. "Did you by any chance pick up a drifting barrel?"

"Yeah…" Luffy said.

"It was a trap!" he exclaimed. "They've been after your ship ever since!"

"Who?!" Luffy asked.

In front of us was the spookiest looking island I've ever seen. There was a haunted mansion in the back ground and the whole island was covered with ominous fog.

"This is the ghost island that wanders the seas…" Brook said grimly. "Thriller Bark!"

* * *

><p>(I don't own One Piece or any of the characters. This was made for entertainment purposes only and no copyright is intended.)<p> 


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